Wizard
by coldstone4815
Summary: (Sequel to FALLEN) "You... You need to wake up now, alright?" But he didn't move. "Seto, please. I'm sorry we did this. I didn't want this to happen. You know I didn't." There was silence, all except the monotone beeping coming from the machine to his right. "I'm sorry..." The sorcerer stirred, and one brown eye opened. They stared at each other, and Seto sighed. "Don't be sorry."
1. Prologue

**So this is the prologue to _Wizard_. The first chapter will be up sometimes between now and Sunday. I hope you peopleses enjoy this story as much as you did the previous three.**

**I have one thing to say before you start reading, though. There will be a LOT of time jumping in here. So whenever you see [...], it means that the time has either gone backwards or forwards. I'll make it pretty clear when the time jumps, so I hope you guys don't become too confused.**

**Enjoy the prologue!**

**-Cold**

* * *

Not once in his entire life did he think it would come down to this.

Not this, of all things.

Water roared in his ears, tumbling over the rocks into a frothy white waterfall. And here he stood, on one rock that stuck out of the middle of the falls. He sighed, closing his brown eyes. Maybe it was for the best. They didn't need him. They never did, never had.

He sniffed, closing his eyes. Water droplets sprayed across his skin, as if wanting him to take those two steps over the edge of the waterfall. He swallowed, spreading his arms out to his sides.

Should he?

Should he take that step? Take that step that would end this pain? This_ suffering_?

Why this? What did he do to deserve this?

Being abandoned by his friends? Being bruised and hurt and heartbroken? Being scarred and cut by his own blade, the one he hid under the sink? Being left alone, forever under the watchful eye of silence?

He couldn't explain any of that.

It must have started at the very beginning. Back when he was innocent and he didn't realize that the world held absolutely nothing but angst and pain to offer.

He let out a shaky sigh. His shoe scuffed the black rock, and then was met with open air. And for a moment, it seemed like he was flying.

"Seto, _no_!"


	2. Flying

**So guys. Here it, the sequel to Fallen. Thanks for your support through it. I hope you enjoy this one, and blah, blah, blah. Read and review! And don't worry, I won't tell what happened to Seto in the prologue until the last chapter or so. (I'm so evil).**

**Enjoy! This chapter won't be as feels-wrenching as the last!**

**-Cold**

One thing every apprentice must know was that sorcerers were completely different things from wizards.

Seto still failed to see the difference, and he had been there for two months.

Well, that was a lie. He knew some differences. But to him, the people were the same. Both used magic. Both could kill. Both were powerful.

Sure, he could get that wizards used power outlets to channel magic. Like staffs, crystal balls, or sometimes animals. But how were sorcerers different from that?

Seto supposed that he hadn't seen anybody use artifacts or anything. They had cast their own spells, made their own potions.

Potions. He was good at those. He could understand them. Unlike magic weaving, where he had to cast spells. Seto despised magic weaving almost as much as he despised demons. He just couldn't get it.

The thing about magic weaving was that you had to create your own spells. You had to make the magic do what you wanted, and there wasn't a right or wrong. It was either succeed or fail. Win or lose. There was no outcome that was set in stone. Potions, on the other hand, were simple. They _had_ a right or wrong—a yes or no.

Seto loved the brewery room almost as much as he loved the library.

Charley*, the Guild Master, never thought of him as a book worm. Nobody he met in the Guild did. But it was obvious from the very first time that he saw the gigantic library that that place would be his best friend at the Guild.

If only it weren't for the group of kids who thought they were better than every apprentice in the Guild.

[…]

Seto leaned against the bookshelves, setting the stack of ancient books next to him. He picked one up, studying the cover. This one he could read. The others all spoke in Rune, and he had yet to learn how to understand it. The librarian (a friendly old woman, she was) had offered to teach him lessons a few weeks ago. He had gladly accepted the invitation to the little lessons.

So here he was, sitting in one corner of the library, reading a book about dragons and mythical creatures. One thing interested him, though.

It was a picture of a dark dragon, curled around a purple egg. The landscape around the beast was barren, empty of any life except tall, dark creatures. The caption read "Ender dragon".

Frowning, Seto looked over the page. Other than the dragon's name, there wasn't any other information about it. His scowl deepened and he flipped through the book, but there wasn't any other information on the black and purple dragon.

Seto stood, the book clutched to his chest, and quietly walked to the center of the library. Here, several chairs and tables were set up around a circular desk. Two other apprentices where sitting at one table, going over something that looked like elemental magic. The librarian was standing behind the desk, sorting a few books. "Ma'am?" Seto asked, going up to her.

He stood on his toes, but even then the desk came up to his shoulders. It was either really tall, or he was really short.

The lady turned and smiled at him. '"Seto! There's my favorite apprentice. How are you doing?" Her voice was wispy, hushed like the wind. Her smile was kind, and her face young. Blue eyes sparkled at him, looking out over a pair of glasses that sat on her small nose.

"Hey, Gwen. I've been here for a while. But I was looking through this book," Seto explained, setting the book up on the counter, "And I was confused about something."

"What is it, Seto?" Gwen leaned forward, eyes scanning the page he flipped open to.

"Why's this dragon left blank?"

Her eyebrows raised up, and a slight frown creased her lips. "The Ender dragon?"

Seto nodded. "Yeah. That's what it said. But It doesn't have any information about it."

"Well," she said, going over to the opening in the desk and walking out. "I think I know a book with information about Ender dragons."

Seto smiled and followed Gwen, holding the book to his chest.

[…]

The thing about the Guild was that it was almost just like school.

Even though he was supposed to be a very powerful child, he still had to go to classes.

Seto tapped his pencil against the side of the desk, leaning his chin on the palm of his hand. He was in a history class, and nothing sounded very interesting. It seemed that the only lectures the history had were about the Aether and the backstory behind the Runes and blah blah blah…

Seto sniffed, glancing around the room. A few apprentices were casting strange looks at him, then turning and whispering to their friends. Seto rolled his eyes, ignoring them. They had been nothing but trouble for him since he got here.

"Hey, shorty." A paper ball hit him in the back of the head, accompanied by a fit of hushed snickers. The instructor continued to drone on. It didn't help that he was three-quarters of the way deaf.

Seto sighed and switched the weight of his head to the other hand, still ignoring them.

"Hey, book worm. Hey, hey, hey. Look. It's you," one of the obnoxious kids whispered, holding up a piece of paper for him to look at. But Seto didn't give them the satisfaction; instead he simply stared at the chalkboard.

The teacher paused and glanced at his wristwatch, then set the chalk down. "Alright, class. You are dismissed, time to go to lunch. The rest of the day the Guild Master expects you to be training with each other."

Seto stood and quietly rushed out of the classroom. After a few minutes, he sighed and slowed his pace. The apprentice glanced over his shoulder, smiling at the fact that he had lost the group. But then, he bumped into somebody. The person pushed him, and he fell to the ground.

"Nobody here ignores us, kid. _Nobody_."

[…]

"Come on, Agnus. You can do it!" Seto prompted, holding the pig-sized Ender dragon up into the air.

The hatchling squawked at him, hunched over his wrist like an eagle. She didn't want to, she was already too far off the ground.

"Come on, girl! You can't be a dragon if you can't fly."

Her father was saying something to her in that strange human language. Seto sighed and easily switched into Rune. She could understand this. "You gotta help me on this one, Agnus. I can't make you fly," he said gently, lowering his arm so he could look her in the eye. "Come on. It's been a month. Hatchlings learn to fly by now."

Agnus crooned and bumped the side of his head with her nose. But she was content to stay down here, next to her father. The sorcerer sighed and let her jump off his arm. He knelt down in the grass next to her, sitting there for a moment. Then he turned to look at the dragon. 'What if I flew with you? Would that work, Agnus?"

The Ender dragon gave him something akin to a grin and bumped his shoulder with her wing. That would work perfectly.


	3. Isn't What it's Supposed to Be

**But I'm proud to present this chapter of Wizard. And I want to warn you guys ahead of time, this is going to get dark. It's not going to be very happy. Seriously, there are pretty dark themes coming up in later chapters. So if that bothers you, don't read it.**

**Anyways, enjoy! Remember to leave a review, or tell your friends. Something to get my sped-esteem up, please. Flames will be doused with water and stomped on afterwards.**

**-Cold**

* * *

The potion sparked, fizzling into a deep violet. Seto sat back, brown eyes narrowing at the newly created liquid. "That wasn't supposed to happen…"

He hummed, turning back to the potion book. "It's supposed to be blue. Not purple. Maybe I didn't add enough Nether wart," he muttered to himself, running a finger down the page of the Rune symbols. Rune came to him easily now, after five years of studying it and other magic. But weaving was still a mystery to him, even after what had happened two months ago.

He sniffed and went over to a chest and lifted it, rummaging around for the Nether wart. After a few moments, he pulled the red root out and walked back over to the brewing stand, only to find the potion gone.

Seto froze and glanced around, running over to the table. "No. No, no, no."

He moved a stack of books, then stood back and looked around again. "It couldn't have just got up and-"

There was a chuckle from the other side if the room. Seto whirled, scowl growing. The violet potion appeared out of thin air, followed by a boy.

"Well, well, well. What so we have here? A failure of a sorcerer creating an illegal potion? Wait 'till the Guild Master hears of this."

Seto's eyes narrowed, fists balling up. "What do you want, Auron? I'm busy."

A smirk from the bully. "Just wanted to check up on Charley's prized apprentice. Is that too much to ask?"

"Go away," Seto growled, "give me the potion back."

The apprentice smirked, swishing the purple liquid around the bottle. "I wonder what this does, hmm? How about we find out..."

"Don't you _dare_ drink that, Auron! It's untested and it could lead to anything! Nether, you can be turned into a frog for all I know! It's highly dangerous and-"

"Ah, shut up." With that, Auron down the purple liquid. Seto felt something inside him snap. If Auron wanted to die, then so be it.

The apprentice hummed and tossed the empty bottle towards Seto. "Heh, see? Your potion was a fail, just like you."

Seto held up a hand. After a second, he dropped down his pinkie finger. Then his ring finger.

"Three. Two. One."

Auron screamed and doubled over, clutching at his chest. He hissed in pain, falling to his knees. He looked up at Seto through his black bangs that swept down the side of his face. "Wh-what-"

Seto winced as Auron cried out again. But this time, it sounded more animalistic than human. Seto watched and stood there as a long, black-furred tail grew from Auron's lower back. The apprentice was shrinking rapidly, black fur growing over pale skin.

"Seto! H-help me, please! H-"

Seto looked away as Auron's face structure shifted. Soon, the apprentice's pained cries fell silent. Only then did Seto look.

There was only a bundle of apprentice robes, no more Auron. Seto frowned and walked over to the pile, lifting a piece of cloth. A black cat jumped out, ears flattened to his head.

Seto jumped back, smiling slightly. "Ha. Look who's the failure now, Auron."

The cat growled at him, ears flat. Auron meowed, fur fluffing up as he backed away. After a moment, he turned and pelted away, stumbling over his own feet.

Seto smirked to himself. The potion would undoubtedly wear off soon, and Auron would have to find out the hard way what embarrassment was.

[...]

"Seto, we wanted to tell you something."

"We, uh... We don't really... need you anymore. And you're so far away from all of us, we never really see you anymore."

"Wh-what do you-?"

"Now guys, this isn't what we agreed on. Sky, what-"

"Ty. It's for everybody's sake. Seto can't control half his spells. If we're near him when something goes wrong, we could be hurt."

"But this isn't-"

"Seto, we're sorry. But... We still want to stay in touch, but we don't really..."

"Sorry, dude. But keep in touch, right? You might have to get a phone to do that."

"It's not funny, Mitch. Stop it, guys why are you-"

"Ty. Our decision was already made. Bye, Seto."

Sky was the first to walk away. Then Jason, then Mitch, then Jerome, then Sundee, then Husky.

Seto and Ty stared at each other, one with guilt and one with confusion.

"Seto, I-"

"Leave him, Ty." was called over the shoulder of the team's 'leader'. Seto gaped, trying to form words. Ty looked down, rusty eyes flooded with shame and guilt. He looked back up at Seto, then said, "Take care of Agnus, okay? I'll be back soon."

The remaining member of Team Crafted swallowed and turned, trying to ignore the hurt stare boring into the back of his head.

"I'm sorry," he whispered, closing his eyes and leaving his friend.

[...]

"Graaah!" Seto screamed, magic splashing out if the floorboards as he slammed the door. His chest heaved and he glanced around. With a flick of his wrist, a bookshelf was toppled over by a wave of silvery magic.

The sorcerer stumbled, but drew back his arm and swung, effectively making a chair fly across the living room, only to collude with the birch planks of the wall.

Seto held his head, fighting back the whispers that summoned the headache.

'_Why don't you get them? They abandoned you. They left you. You're unwanted. You're unloved. Get them back for it.'_

Seto pushed his palms into his eyes, trying to block out the images of his 'friends' faces. "Shut up!" he screamed, clenching his teeth. "Shut up!"

_'You **died** for them, and now they left you alone. All, all alone.'_

"No!" Seto shouted, clamping his hands over his ears. "I'm not alone! I'm not!"

'_But you are, aren't you? Even Agnus will grow up eventually, an Ty will forget you. Bodil's always busy making maps. Jordan's only ever talked to you when you were dead. They'll forget you. They'll leave you. That don't care about you. Nobody does. You're unwanted. You're **stupid**. You're crazy. You're mad. You're **insane**.'_

"No! I'm not! I'm not insane, I'm not insane!" he cried into the empty air, tendrils of magic whipping around, crushing anything in reach. He fell against the wall, sliding to the floor. "Leave me alone! Go away!"

'_But then you'd be even more alone_,' the door to his left whispered.

_'If I weren't here, you wouldn't be either_,' the floorboards hissed.

_'They think you're crazy. They think you're stupid. End it, Seto. Kill them, and you won't be in this **hell** you're living,' _the voices whispers, swirling around his head.

Seto screamed, curling into a ball. "Leave me alone!" he sobbed, tears dripping down his cheeks. "Go away!"

The voices cackled, and suddenly things grew silent. He was left there, curled in a ball, crying.

Why did this have to happen to him? Couldn't his life just go right for once? Why did it always have to be him? What did he do to deserve this?

"W-why me?" Seto whispered, closing his eyes against the tears. "_Why_?"

* * *

**Disclaimer: I own nothing. And the middle part is NOT WHAT ACTUALLY HAPPENED. This is a FICTIONAL telling of the Kicked from Crafted. Not to be taken seriously. That is what based off of the canons I've used in any stories previous.**

**And please, I don't want anybody pointing out why Seto was actually kicked. I know it well enough, trust me. So yeah, I hope you enoyed. Thank you for reading.**


	4. And Your Mind Agrees

**So on one hand, this is a double post. On the other, I have bad news. This story might be shorter than I thought it would be. If I keep going like this, it will add up to at least **_**Animal's**_** chapter count. So yeah.**

**And, heh. You guys didn't see that insanity twist did you? It all ties in, in the end. Just remember to keep a watchful eye out. Be vigilant, look at the tiny hints. One that isn't so tiny is the title. Think about it.**

**Enjoy, though! Reviews are greatly appreciated!**

**-Cold**

* * *

"Charley, I just don't get it!" Seto grunted, rubbing the sides of his head. Four years, and he still couldn't cast spells. "It's- it's just not possible. I've studied, I've trained, and I've done everything! But nothing's working."

The Guild Master frowned and looked at him over his reading glasses. "Seto, I think you just need to take a moment and breathe. Getting worked up about spells isn't worth your time. And I know you can do it. You've done it before."

Seto shook his head, propping his elbows on the spruce wood table. "But that was an accident. I wasn't even…"

"You weren't even what?' Charley set down the scroll he had been reading and leaned in, eyes narrowing slightly. "What was wrong?"

Seto looked away, face heating up. He shouldn't have said that. He really, really shouldn't have. "I wasn't… I wasn't… I-in control…"

Charley sat back, folding his hands on the table. He hummed, frowning slightly. Seto looked down at the grooved lines on the surface of the wood. "I-I never-"

"This is good."

"Wh-what?" Seto looked up to find Charley smiling, eyes crinkling like they always did when he smiled. "What do you mean, good?"

"Are you kidding, Seto? This is amazing! I thought you were powerful, but not this powerful!" Seto sat back, suddenly unable to view Charley as he used to. He didn't miss that spark of… _something_ in the Guild Master's eyes.

"What does it have to do with power, Charley? What are you talking about?" Seto asked, scooting his chair back a bit, just in case he needed to get out of there.

"What I mean is that I can teach you, Seto!" Charley said in a hushed whisper, glancing around the library. He looked back at the apprentice. "I can show you how to control it, and cast speels, and be as amazing as you can be!"

"I don't know…" Seto muttered, looking away. Suddenly, a hand made up of blue and silver magic turned his head so he was staring at Charley.

"Have I ever given you a reason not to trust me?" Charley asked, smiling slightly. Seto blinked and swallowed, trying to judge if Charley had gone insane. After a few moments of silence, he finally cracked a smile and nodded as best he could.

"Alright, fine. I can trust you."

[…]

"Hey, here's the little potion wimp! We were just talking about you, idiot!"

Seto scowled, ignoring Auron and his little gang of friends. A wadded ball of paper flew past his head, rolling across the ground before bumping into a wall and coming to a stop. Seto took a deep breath and continued.

"Dude, Seto! Where ya going, kid? Going to see your daddy or mommy?"

Oh yeah, that was right. It was one of the four days the parents could visit the Guild to see their children. Too bad both of Seto's parents were dead.

He kept on walking, intent on getting to his room to escape the bullies.

"Oh wait! He doesn't _have_ any!"

'_Ooh… They actually went there. What are you going to do, Seto?'_

Seto stopped, then. He stared at the ground, shifting the handful of scrolls to his to other arm. For a moment, he just stood there. Then, when another paper ball thumped into his back, he turned around.

Auron froze at his gaze, which had somehow melted into icy, emotionless silver. But then the unnatural color was replaced by the light brown as Seto blinked.

Seto stared at Auron, and a smirk slowly grew on his face. "You're right, Auron. I don't have any parents. You want to why I don't?"

Auron stared at Seto, squaring his shoulders in an attempt to look bigger than the other apprentice. They were almost the same height, but he was sure that he had a stronger build than Seto.

"They were killed by Herobrine. Mom burned to death while shoving me out the window, and dad ran after the demon."

'_Such lies, Seto. You know he was dead long before that. Quit denying that he wasn't some kind of sorcerer. Maybe even a wizard, hmm?'_

Seto ignored the voices, staring down the bully. "There. You know the truth. Happy?"

Auron smirked and grinned, crossing his arms. His hands were shaking at Seto's cold stare. "Yeah. I'm happy. Because now I know why poor little Seto is Charley's favorite. You think he'll be your dad, don't you? Do you think he'll be able to replace your old family? He doesn't even want you. He doesn't care about you, nobody does."

Seto could feel his emotionless facade start to crumple. He narrowed his eyes, and balling into fist. "No. I'm just learning some spells from him. I'm not-"

"Aw, look at the little baby!" one of the other boys said, smirking alongside Auron. "He needs a daddy! Oh, but he doesn't have one! Oh well, no loss!"

"Sh-shut up," Seto said quietly, grimacing.

Auron laughed. "His daddy must have run away when he saw how stupid and ugly his sorry excuse for a son was! Haha, I bet your dad's out there somewhere, having the time of his life! That Herobrine thing must be a joke! No way would that ever happen, Herobrine's just a myth to get children to go to sleep at night! Do you believe in myths, Seto?" he taunted, leaning forward slightly. "Does the big, scary demon make you tremble? How pathetic."

Seto took a step back, swallowing.

'_You're just going to let them do this to you?'_ The wall to his right hissed.

'_But they're right, aren't they?'_ another door said, _'You are stupid. You are weak. You are a baby._'

"Shut up," Seto murmured, taking another few steps away from the approaching gang of apprentices. "Leave me alone,"

Was he talking to himself or Auron?

'_Both, idiot.'_

"You're stupid, Seto. You don't deserve to be here. You don't deserve to be magical. You don't deserve to _live_." Auron spat, reaching out a hand. A few tendrils of gold and silver magic pooled in his palm, but it dissipated shortly after. "You can't do this, can you? You're useless. Go get eaten by a dragon or something. You don't need to be here, you waste of air."

'_He's right you know.'_

And Seto ran, shoving past other apprentices and sorcerers until he reached his room. The door was slammed shut, with him leaning against it. Tears welled in his eyes. He was a waste of space. Even his own mind agreed with Auron.

He sniffed, furiously wiping his face with a sleeve, and slowly walked over to his bed. His room was nothing much. He never had anything to personalize it, and he had kept it neat and clean while he was in there.

Seto flopped onto the semi-soft cushion, burying his face in the one pillow he had.

'_Stupid, worthless, waste of space, idiot, ugly, unwanted, unloved, abandoned, alone.'_

"Shut up," he mumbled into the white fabric. "Just shut up, all of you…"

[…]

"Agnus, come on! You can do this! Fly, already!"

Seto pushed the dragon into the air, letting go of her. She squawked, flailing wildly. The sorcerer sighed, reaching up to grab her. She crooned and curled against his chest, hiding her face.

"Come on, baby girl. I know you can fly. I know you have it in you," he whispered, rubbing a soft spot, barren of any scale, behind her pointed ear. She snorted, curling her fingers into his shirt. "I try, Agnus," he said in Rune.

She finally looked up at him, violet eyes sad. Agnus sniffed and looked away. "Come on," he spoke, not fumbling over his words in the old language. "Tell me what's wrong. Is it because I don't have any wings? I tried flying with you, Agnus. Even then, you refused to fly by yourself. What am I doing wrong?"

After a moment, Agnus shifted and crawled onto his shoulder, then climbed onto his head. Seto frowned and tried to look up, but he couldn't with her on his head.

Another few seconds of silence past, then she jumped. Seto caught his breath, looking up as Agnus frantically flapped her wings, unbalanced. Her flying was sloppy and short, but those few moments of her actually supporting her own weight in the air made Seto smile. He knew she could do it.


	5. Even if it's Helping

"Charley!" Seto called, pressing a sleeve over his mouth and nose. He coughed, waving away the smoke that blocked his vision. "Charley, where are you?!"

The roar of the dragon cut through the smoky bog, and a wave of flames swept over the roof above him. He glanced up, out of one of the burning holes, to see the ruby red dragon circle above them. Fear shivered through him and he ran, trying to escape the dragon's golden gaze.

"_Charley_! Charley, please answer me!"

"S-Seto?"

Seto whirled around, eyes catching sight of the blue and black robes. Seto scrambled over to the Guild Master, attempting to lift the beam that was pinning him to the ground. "Just hang on, Charley, I'll-" He coughed, but shook it off and grabbed the smoldering beam, trying to lift it off. "I'll help you."

"N-no, Seto. Get my staff. Hurry, g-get it," the elder man croaked out, pointing a crooked finger towards the staff, which leaned against a charred wall, thankfully unharmed. Seto ran over to it, grabbing the old thing and bringing it to Charley. "Here, I got it," he said hurriedly, pushing the staff towards the Guild Master.

Charley shook his head, gently putting it back in Seto's hands. "No, Seto. You need to take it. Whatever you do, don't let the dragon get to it. Protect it with your life, okay?" Charley coughed harshly, breath rattling in his lungs. He gasped for air, dark eyes going over to meet Seto's lighter brown ones. "You need… t-to l-learn the ways of…"

The dragon roared, and there was a huge _thunk_ as it landed on the roof. Seto looked up as splinters and burning pieces of wood fell down and a red and gold dragon leg slipped into the room. The talons curled around the boards, ripping them away with ease.

"Go, Seto…" Charley coughed again, eyes clenching shut with pain. Seto shook his head frantically, summoning as much energy as he could to make the silver and purple magic weave into the wood. The beam was lifted slightly, but the magic slipped away and it dropped back down n top of Charley.

"No, I'm _not_ leaving you!"

The dragon roared, scraping away even more of the ceiling. Soon enough there was a hole big enough for it to fit through. Seto looked up, shielding Charley from the debris. "Charley? Wake up! Charley!"

And suddenly the dragon was upon them both, orange flames licking out of the corners of its mouth. It screeched at them, bending its head low to stare at the two sorcerers with malice in its bright golden and black-specked eyes.

It hissed, lips curling into a smile. **_"Well, well… If I isn't the prophecy and the traitor? And here I thought I was lucky to find the staff in the first place."_**

"Prophecy?" Seto whispered to himself, glancing down at Charley. "… _Traitor_?"

The dragon laughed, voice booming around the smoking library. **_"Oh, you do not know? Well, I suppose I won't tell you, seeing that you are going to die soon anyway."_**

Seto swallowed, standing up and protectively spreading his arms, as if that would shield the Guild Master. His voice shook when he spoke, "You must have the wrong people. Charley wouldn't do any such thing. And I'm not part of some prophecy that I don't even know about."

The dragon grinned down at him, golden-webbed wings fanning out, brushing the ceiling. Her (the voice proved the dragon's gender) golden underbelly, crusted with gems and treasure, puffed out in . . . pride? A red-scaled paw reached forward, golden claws grabbing his cape. Seto gagged, grip tightening on the staff as he was lifted into the air.

**_"How pathetic," _**the dragon spat, holding Seto up to her eye, studying him. **_"Are you the actual wizard of legend? The one that will save Minecraftia? Ha! They never told you, and now they will pay with your life. And, the traitor will have to sit there. Then I will kill him."_**

_"You're just going to let the damn beast do this to your home, Seto? Let me take control! I can help you!"_

Seto shook his head, keeping the voice at the back of his mind. The dragon grinned at him, sitting back on her haunches. **_"Yes, yes. You are the legend of the prophecy. There's a demon inside of you, yes. I can see it in your eyes. 'Tis a well shame that I am the one to end you."_**

Seto scowled, swinging his legs wildly in an attempt to get away. She bobbed her hand, making him swing in the air. Seto reached up to the maroon, creeper-faced brooch that held the clasp of his cape together. With a forceful yank, he ripped it off. The cape snapped apart, and he was sent tumbling to the ground.

Panic seized his limbs, and the sapphire gem glowed. Suddenly his magic snapped out, grabbing the nearest tem, an empty bookshelf, and pulled it under his feet. Seto collapse onto the small square of planks, free hand curling around the edge in fear of falling off. "I just levitated an entire bookshelf," he whispered to himself, looking down at the shelf. "Not even Charley could…"

The dragon cackled again and sent a sweep of orange fire at him. Seto waved his hand, and the shelf jerked out of the way. He slowly stood up, knees visibly shaking. He leveled the staff's gem at the dragon, and she laughed once again.

**_"I thought sorcerers hated wizards!"_**

"Huh?" Seto lowered the staff, looking at the glowing blue gem. "Wh-what do you mean?"

**_"Wizards can only use their powers if they have a conduit! And look at you, suddenly powerful with that measly stick in your hands!" _**She smiled at him, tail crashing against the wall, making part of the ceiling collapse in on itself. He jerked the staff to the right, and the bookshelf willingly flew away from the falling debris.

"You mean…"

And suddenly the dragon turned, scooping up Charley with her giant paw. **_"Yes. You know what I mean."_**

And then the Guild Master was thrown against the wall. He fell, limp, to the floor. "Charley!" Seto cried, urging the bookshelf to fly towards the Guild Master. But a wing fanned out and he smacked into the golden leather. She chuckled and caught Seto as he fell. **_"I suppose I should have given you an explanation before he died, but now it is much to late."_**

And then Seto was falling. Before he could possibly summon enough energy to pick something up into the air, a red tail swung around and smacked him, hurling him into a flaming wall. He cried out, sliding down the wall and thumping onto the top of a bookshelf before rolling off it and landing on the ground. A golden-padded paw picked him up, claws curling around him like a cage.

Seto groaned, holding the staff close to his body. His body shuddered in pain. He was sure one of his legs was broken and breathing sent sharp jabs of fiery pain through his chest.

**_"As I said before, wizard. Pathetic."_**

Seto weakly willed himself to keep his eyes open. He struggled to point the staff at the dragon, but the sapphire barely glowed. A book was thrown across the room by purple and silver magic, hitting one of the dragon's golden horns. She didn't even notice.

_"Seto, please. I do not want to die. Let me take over."_

He felt that unknown presence rise inside his mind, and black spots swam across his vision. His body felt numb, but then the dragon tossed him into the air. There was a sound of her taking a deep breath, then flames swept around him just as that voice took a hold of his body.

[…]

When he woke up, he was sprawled on a bed of pine needles. The voice inside his head was silent for once. Seto groaned and propped himself up with his elbows, sending pain through his body. "Wh-what…"

He glanced over his shoulder, and his eyes widened.

All that was left of the Guild were a few smoldering walls. His gaze travelled to the red and gold heap of what used to be the fire breather.

"Did you…"

_"Seto… I am tired. Shut up and remember you're useless."_

Seto coughed and struggled to his feet, but instantly fell back down to the ground. "H-help me… Come on, just…"

But that other voice, the one he had grown to hate and ignore, was completely silent. For the first time in his life, he realized that maybe he wasn't insane. Was that voice a completely different entity? Seto had always thought it was just a darker, twisted version of him speaking. But now, he realized that maybe that wasn't the case.

Seto groaned again and picked himself up, leaning heavily against a slightly burnt pine tree. The bark was surprisingly warm, and sticky sap leaked out of a gash on its side. Seto glanced around then hobbled over to the staff, which looked like an old piece of firewood. He scooped it up, leaning against it for support.

He needed help. If he didn't find someone, he would die.

So with the creeper brooch stuffed in his pocket, the staff being used as support, and the voice inside his head silent, Seto walked.

[…]

Seto stumbled to the ground, coughing. His entire body shook, and it had just been three hours of walking. He couldn't take much more.

The world spun around him, black spots swimming in his peripheral vision. This must be the end. He had failed. What he had failed, he didn't know. But there was that sense of regret and guilt deep inside him. He looked up, struggling to pull himself across the ground. Was it his imagination, or was the light of a torch slowly bobbing its way towards him?

The moon was a simple dim sliver of light in the sky, and clouds rolled over the stars. It was dark, and Seto was weak. If there was someone actually coming towards him, they would easily be able to kill him. But if they didn't notice Seto, the mobs would eventually find him. So the sorcerer did the only thing available: He called for help.

"H-help…" His voice came out in a rattling whisper, slightly coughed. "Help…"

He collapsed, pain searing through his body. With his ear pressed to the ground, he heard footsteps. They paused, and then started up again.

"A-anybody, please… H-help…"

This time the footsteps fully stopped. Seto forced his eyes open as the light of a torch came nearer to him. He could make out a strange green glow and a surprised rusty red gaze before he blacked out.

[…]

"Agnus, you're two years old. What have I done wrong?"

The half-grown Ender dragon looked away, up at the sky. She was about as big as a tree, and she had been hiding in a large clearing in the forest, near Seto's house. She has yet to say a word, though, and Seto was growing worried.

"Agnus, please. You can talk to me. I know you can," h whispered in Rune, placing a hand against the pale purple underbelly, which traveled from the underside of her tail all the way up to her chin. "Agnus…"

She shook her head, bending her neck to push back his hood, ruffling his hair. Seto smiled slightly, craning his neck to look up. "Come on, girl. Don't you want to meet another dragon someday and say hello?'

Agnus' eyes narrowed slightly, and she sat down on the ground.

"Okay, okay. I know dragons are rare these days." So much had changed in seven years. It seemed like a forever-ago since that she-dragon had burned the Guild down, starting his dragon-slaying career. But that had lasted a year, and he had slain twelve of them. It had been a dark spot in his past, one he had not yet shared with anybody. "But maybe someday you'll meet some handsome dragon, and, well…"

Agnus growled, laying her head down on her paws. Her tail curled around, sweeping Seto of his feet. He felt onto her foreleg with an _oomph_, and there he stayed. "You're stubborn, you know."

Agnus smiled down at him, bright violet eyes seemingly laughing at his human clumsiness. "You know, Agnus. You're such a brat," he said in good humor, smirking up at her. Agnus chuckled, a deep rumbling sound from inside her chest. Seto could feel the vibrations, and he sat up, leaning his head against her chest. "You're getting so big, baby girl. I don't know what I'm going to do anymore," he said quietly, running a hand over one of the thick platings that protected her underbelly.

She crooned and a wing was folded around them. He sighed and looked up, watching the sun shine through the purple leather. "You're getting really beautiful, too. You know that?"

Agnus snorted in thanks, forked tongue flicking out ad rubbing against his cheek, leaving a trail of saliva. Seto laughed, wiping it away with his sleeve. "You're still that disgusting little hatchling, though."

This earned him a puff of smoke blown into his face, courtesy of the 'disgusting little hatchling'. Seto chuckled, leaning against her. Agnus warbled something and wrapped a paw around him, hugging him close. Seto smiled, running a thumb over one of the black claws that were as big as his forearm.

"I love you, Agnus…"

There was a pause, and then, **_"I…. I love you too, father."_**

* * *

**Oh my god. Father/daughter moment galore! I love these two, you know. I haven't written them alone for a while.**

**I bet some of you guys are a bit confused. Let me explain.**

**Dragons, once they grow older, learn how to speak. They are extremely intelligent creatures, yet sometimes the younger ones can't translate the Rune language to the Craftian language, like Agnus. She can get the basic concept of what people are saying, but understands mostly Rune. Other full-grown dragons, like the ruby one at the beginning, are much wiser and older (dragons live for a very, very long time. Thousands of years, in fact.) and have had more time to learn the languages. Dragons are also known for their notorious hoarding of precious gems and gold. Most dragons find laying on top of a mound of treasure the most comforting bed in the world. Sometimes, these gems will get stuck in the creases and nooks of the dragon's scales, and eventually the plating will grow around the gems. This is not in the least uncomfortable for the dragon, either.**

**And, what is this talk of a prophecy?! Have I entered a completely new twist into this story or what? I'm beginning to think this might not be as short as I thought it would be. Hmm, we'll see... **

**And is that degrading voice inside Seto's head his own or something else entirely? Find out in the next few chapters...**

**I hope you enjoyed! Feedback is greatly appreciated! But seriously, guys, don't stress yourself to review every chapter. Two or three reviews can mke my day and give me all the inspiration I need to make even more chapters. Thank you!**

**-Cold**


	6. It Silently Hurts You

"Don't worry guys. I'll be back soon, okay?"

"… Just don't get eaten by the dragon again, alright Seto?"

"Ty, you know me. Do I look as stupid as you think? Don't answer that."

"Seto, Jason's making his chicken and dumplings tonight for dinner. If you aren't back by eight we're eating it without you."

"Alright, Sky. Save me some."

"No promises."

So here he was, making his way through the forest of pine trees. The staff was in his hands, knuckles white around it. He glanced over his shoulder, making sure that nobody was following him for the twentieth time. He took a deep breath and turned back to where he knew the ruins of the Guild were. The air still smelled of smoke and death, and it had been a few days since he had woken up.

He came around a tree, and the iron gates came into view. Normally polished into a dark onyx, the gates were now bent and melted into a dirty black, destroyed by the heat of the dragon's fire.

Speaking of the dragon. Seto's gaze travelled to the golden and red heap of scales. The dragon itself was covered in deep cuts and wounds, and scales littered the grounds around her. Seto calmly walked over to her head, hand trailing across the golden underside of her neck. His fingers brushed over a diamond embedded into her scale, but he simply passed it up. There would be time later to get all the treasure; nobody from the city would even dare come into this 'haunted' forest.

Seto came to a rest at the dragon's head, looking up at the dulled golden eye. "You used to be beautiful, madam. It is a shame you had to end to a voice inside my head."

_"Ouch, Seto. Such harsh words from a fourteen-year-old."_

Seto ignored the demon and instead made a block lift out of the ground. He jumped down to the dragon's crested head, holding onto one of the horns that created the webbed frill on the sides of her head.

He turned to look down the dragon's back, breath stolen away by the sheer size of the fire-breather. She was a giant for sure, one of the Aetherian breeds. He felt a twinge of guilt for killing her.

_"Don't you dare take credit for the slaying of the beast, Wizard. Don't. You. DARE."_

Seto smirked and started walking down the dragon's neck, going over to her shoulder. "There is no proof that neither of us did it, you know. If anybody finds out, I could say a god from the Aether had smitten her down. Nobody but me knows that you're the one that had slain her."

The voice growled and resorted to sending a sharp jab in Seto's mind, but the sorcerer just laughed. He turned and slid down the side of the dragon, slightly jarring his aching leg and ribs.

_"…Idiot."_

"Shut up, you and I both know we could just make a healing spell."

Seto went over to the dragon's chest, fingers sometimes curling under the golden plating.

_"I… I am curious, Wizard. You seem to be searching for something. What is it?"_

Seto didn't answer. Instead, he reached under another plate. "I found it. Hang on, I'll show you."

He grunted, wrapping his hand around the object and tugging. "Notch, this one's deep… I wonder… how old she… was!"

He fell backwards, fingers curled around a ruby scale. He smiled down at his prize, turning the thing over in his hands. It couldn't have been any bigger than his palm, and was a brilliant ruby color.

_"That's it? Just a stupid scale? Notch, Seto, you're stupid."_

"This scale can grant wishes," Seto said indignantly, standing up. He grabbed the staff from off the ground. "I read about dragons, I know a lot about them. Each dragon has this one scale, they have it their entire life. It holds all the magic and life of the dragon."

_"You really did do your homework about these stupid lizards, didn't you? Is that the reason I knew the weakness of this one?"_

"Most likely, yes," Seto answered, holding the scale up to the light. He shivered at the greedy feeling inside him, hating himself for it. But he couldn't help it—the scale was simply too powerful to pass up. It could do anything-

What was he thinking?

The voice cackled in his mind. _"You are what you are, Seto. That's the thoughts of a Wizard. Trust me; I've been with a few through the ages. I know the way they think."_

Seto's face drew into a scowl, and he stuffed the scale into a pocket. "Whatever. Should I tell the others about the dragon? I could help them, you know. They're already struggling to feed three mouths, much less mine."

_"Why should I care?"_

"Because if I starve, you starve. And if I die, then you'll just have to find another host before you fade away. And I'm very sure that you don't want to be stuck with another infant and have to wait another fifty cycles."

The voice growled and settled back to the very far corner of his mind, brooding. Seto smirked slightly at his small victory and turned back to the dragon. "Time to test this scale out."

He looked down, carefully taking it out of his pocket. "I wish for you to tell me your name, madam."

The ruby scale shimmered, and a name appeared in golden cursive. _"Adeleindah."_

Seto snorted at the Aetherian name. "Noble serpent, indeed," he muttered, translating the language to Craftian. "So I presume you are of nobility, Adeleindah?" he asked the dragon's body, looking up at the heap of scales. "Then why would someone of your status be sent down here to do this? Surely the gods would have objected."

Seto sighed and looked back down at the scale. "Adeleindah, I wish for every gem here to pile in front of me, please madam."

He knew that dragons were picky creatures, always holding themselves above other beings. They appreciated manners, even in death. He watched as the gems shook, then slowly fell to the ground and rolled over to him. He smiled and glanced back at the scale. "Thank you, madam."

_"Stop talking to the stupid scale, Wizard. I know you came here to do something else, as well. Hurry up, we are beginning to get hungry and the sun is starting to set. We will not be able t defend ourselves."_

Seto rolled his eyes and started running to the ruins of the Guild, leaving medium-sized pile of treasure for the time being. "Yeah, yeah. I just need to hide this thing."

Seto hefted the staff, holding it over his shoulder. "And maybe I can find some silk or something to make myself new robes. Ty's shirts are a bit too big for me, you know."

_"I do not see why you would need clothes. They only slow you down, Wizard."_

Seto blushed slightly and shook his head. "This is why you're only in my head. Just leave me alone."

_"Hmm? What did you say? You know that I have a rare auditory disorder that keeps me from hearing people who have an IQ below their shoe size. So I'd suggest you just shut up."_

[…]

With the staff safely hidden inside a wall and a few pounds of treasure wrapped in a bundle of purple robes, Seto made his way to the city as quickly as he could. He kept glancing up at the sun, hoping he'd be back before eight, as Sky had said.

_"Hurry up, idiot. We will not be getting any supper tonight if you do not freaking hurry."_

"I'm trying," Seto murmured under his breath, hardly moving his lips. He glanced around and walked to the tailoring store. "I'm trying."

_"Not trying hard enough," _the voice said in a sing-song voice, turning inside his mind. _"You know if you let me take over I could get everything done faster."_

"You'll kill everybody. No."

The bell rung as he opened the door, chiming loudly through the small shop. The lady at the counter looked up, smiling brightly at the young sorcerer. "Ah, hello there. What can I-"

"Crows are bad luck," Seto said immediately, sliding out a chunk of emerald. "I need three pairs, and could you make a cape out of this cloth here?"

The lady's smile had vanished, but she nodded and took his payment and cloth, going into the room behind the counter. Seto was left looking at brightly-colored patterns of clothing, foot tapping impatiently. Finally the lady came out.

The cape was made, the exact same as he used to have. Seto smiled and took it, bringing out the maroon creeper brooch and clasping the cape around his shoulders. "Thank you madam."

"What is your type?"

Seto paused a moment, fiddling with the clasp. He glanced around, then quickly held out his hand, palm up. A swirl of silver and purple sparked two inches above his palm, then floated over to the lady. She examined the magic and nodded. "I have two pairs; you will have to wait for any more."

"I can wait."

"Alright. Here you go, then. And… Do you come from the Ethereal Forest?"

Seto's brown gaze flicked down to the magic-infused clothes, then up to her. "The Guild has fallen," he said, voice low. She nodded and sighed. "Yes, as I expected. What happened to it?"

"A dragon."

"So that is where you got…"

Seto nodded and turned away. "Yes. I'm the last one from there."

"What about a boy named Auron? Do you know if he is alive? He is red and silver, I believe."

A lump formed in his throat and he turned back around, grip tightening on his newly-acquired clothes. "Is he special to you?"

"He is my son."

Seto abruptly turned back around, air hitching in his throat. This woman here, the one that had been kind to him, was the mother of the bane of his existence. "I… I haven't seen him."

_"Yes you have, Seto. I distinctly remember a burning beam falling on his head as you ran to find Charles."_

The woman sighed, shoulders slumping. "Oh… He never wrote back to me, you know. I miss him."

Seto swallowed and turned back to her, head hanging low. "Madam, I don't think he… I'm sory to be the bearer of bad news, but…"

"It's okay. I understand. But be well, sorcerer. I have a feeling the gods kept you alive for a reason."

[…]

Sky tapped his fork against the bowl, scowling lightly. "Do we really have to wait to eat, guys?" he whined, once again glancing at the old clock hung on the wall.

"Sky, it isn't even eight yet," Ty said from the kitchen, fixing himself a bowl of chicken and dumplings. "He'll be back soon."

"How do you know he didn't just run off?" Jason asked, forehead furrowing with his eyebrows. "He's only been awake for four days. We haven't had a lot of time to get to know him…"

Sky nodded and sighed, shoulders hunching. "Jason might be right, Ty."

The headphone-wearing teen scowled and sat down at the table, only to get up again to grab a fork. "Seto wouldn't do that. I trust him, and I don't know why you can't either."

"Well-"

The door swung open, smacking against the wall as Seto hurried inside. He smiled at them. "Guys! Guess what! I traded the staff, and it turned out to be worth much more than I originally thought!"

"What?" Sky asked, food suddenly forgotten. "How much?"

Seto beamed and showed them the gems folded in his new clothes.

He'd never forget how each of their jaws dropped to the table at the sight of the sparkling gems.

* * *

**So I was contemplating on uploading this today or sometime else. But in the end, it turned out to be today. I hope you enjoyed, guys. Leave a review, tell me what you think, same old. Thank you, I'll try to have the next chapter up this week, maybe a bit before the weekend.**

**-Cold**


	7. But Smile and Say it's Nothing

**Hey. Hey guess what. There's a special appearance in this chapter.**

**Enjoy.**

* * *

A roar sounded above him, and fire spilled onto the ground. Seto scowled and rolled over to a boulder, pressing against it. The fifteen-year-old gasped for air, coughing on the smoke. This would be his fifth dragon without help from the voice, the eleventh he would have slain in total.

His heart pounded in his ears, almost blocking out the warning cry from the voice.

_"You idiot!" _it cried as Seto brought up a wall of stone to block the lava-like flames pouring down on him. _"Are you TRYING to get us killed?! Run!"_

For once, the voice actually had a good idea. Seto sprung out of his hiding place, sending trees and weapons up at the sky-blue dragon.

This one was Aetherian, and Seto was sure that it had a few siblings, but it was small. With a pale grey underbelly, matching wings, and sparkling blue scales, it was almost invisible among the clouds.

Seto was also fairly certain that he just needed to deliver a few more good blows and the dragon would be down.

It had been five years since Ty had found him. Five years of secrecy, just to keep his sorcery hidden. Or as the voice would call it, wizardry. They had survived off each other, all bringing home money so they could buy their next meal. But they were practically family, the four of them.

_"Duck, you imbecile!"_

Seto scowled and rolled away from the jet of blue-tinted lava pouring down on his head. He was determined to take down an Aetherian dragon without any help. And so far he was fairing pretty well, except for a few burns and cuts that he would somehow have to explain to the others. He looked up, grip tightening on the diamond sword. "Alright," he whispered, "Here's the plan. I go in and throw this sword at the dragon, then make it hit its head and kill it. Does that sound good?"

_"Yes…. Well, when you die and I go to a different One and they ask me how you died, I'll say you killed yourself with the foolish stupidity."_

"Good to know."

_"That was supposed to be an insult, you waste of air."_

Seto tensed his muscles, waiting for the sky blue dragon to dive at him again. After a moment, he jumped out of the protection of the rocky outcrop and hurled the diamond sword. He instantly twisted his hand, willing the silver and purple magic to wind around the blade, guiding it into the dragon's skull.

The beast fell with a pained roar, clawing at the sword stabbed through the top of its snout. Seto waited for it to crash into the ground before running towards the downed beast.

It screeched at him, one wing pounding against the ground in agony. Seto winced and made a rock float him up to the sword. "I am sorry, brave warrior of the sky," he said to the dragon, utter respect in his voice as he yanked the sword out of the dragon's head. The dying dragon groaned and huffed, beautiful emerald eyes sliding shut. "You had courage," Seto continued, making the rock float down. He walked to the small dragon's chest, wedging part of his sword under the not-so-fully developed plating. "And I only have respect for your sacrifice, strong drake."

The dragon took a pained breath, sides heaving in pain. Seto's eyes roved over the fatal wounds crisscrossing the beast's slender form. "You will be remembered, defender of the skies."

With that, he twisted and jabbed the sword inwards. The beast shuddered, and its heart gave one last weak beat before falling still.

[…]

There was a knock on Seto's door.

The sorcerer groaned, curling closer to Agnus. The Ender dragon snorted, wrapping a wing around his body. But the knocking persisted, keeping Seto from going back to sleep. He mumbled something and sat up, rubbing an eye. "Who's it?" he murmured, eyelids drooping.

"Seto? I'm in a bit of a predicament and I really need your help!"

Seto blinked drowsily and stood, stretching his hands in the air. "I'll-" He yawned. "Be there in a moment."

"Seto, please! Sky's dog is after me! The stupid mutt is trained to attack me, I swear! G-good doggy! Good Fido!"

Seto grumbled under his breath and padded towards the door, swinging it open. He sniffed and looked around, frowning when there was nobody there but Sky's dog, who as sitting out in the yard, tail pounding the grass.

"Hey there, Seto? I'm kind of over here."

Seto instantly glanced to his right, where a squid was desperately trying to stay off the ground by holding onto the lamp that hung next to his door. Seto jumped backwards, fumbling for some sort of spell to make the squid fly away.

"Gah!" he screamed, silver and purple magic tugging away at his tentacles."Seto, Seto it's me! Gordy! Dear Notch, human, are you trying to pull me apart?"

Seto blinked, lowering his hands slightly. "Gordy? Wh-what are you doing here? It's freaking two in the morning!"

The squid squirmed back onto the top of the lamp, one of his two longer tentacles furiously trying to bat away Sky's dog. "I was going to pay Sky a visit, but then his stupid mutt attacked me, and I was chased all around before I saw your house. Seto, would you mind?"

Seto sighed, stomping down the three steps. "Alright, girl, get back to your home! Go on, get!"

The dog whimpered as he stomped his foot, magic flaring around him. She scrambled away from him, sliding on the leaves. Seto glared at her as she went, then sighed and turned to Gordy. "Come on. It's freezing out here."

He held out an arm and the prince clambered onto it, holding on tight. "You didn't seem very nice to that dog," he said, twisting around to look at where the mutt had gone.

"She's bitten me more than once. And right now things haven't been very good with any of the team; I think they're starting to push me away."

"Well that's a shame, they all seem so nice! Except that one with the glasses, he was yelling at me for trying some cake. He stepped on one of my tentacles, you know…"

Seto yawned, kicking the door closed behind him. "Ian? Yeah, you don't touch his cake."

"He wasn't here when Sky was in trouble. Why wasn't he?"

"I think he was away," Seto murmured, plopping down on the couch. Gordy slid over to the corner, blue eyes peering around the room before finally resting on Agnus, who was curled up on the floor, asleep. "What is she?"

"She's an Ender dragon. I sent her away when everything was happening. I didn't want the others to bother her, or vice versa." Seto leaned back on the couch, stretching again. Gordy peered at him, navy eyes reflecting the flames in the fireplace. "Are you tired, human?"

Seto nodded and sighed, running a hand over his bed head. "Yeah, it's too early to be up. Do you ever even sleep?"

"No, actually, I don't. Time doesn't really matter down in the water, you know."

Seto hummed, eyes drooping again. Agnus groaned and staggered to her feet, stumbling over to him. She crawled onto the couch, lying down on top of his lap. Seto set his hand on her head, fingers running over the soft ear.

"Is she a good dragon?" Gordy asked, squirming up onto the armrest. "I've heard of dragons, and they're all evil and deadly."

Seto smiled down at Agnus, who hummed softly in her sleep and shifted, smoke trailing out of her nostrils. "Yeah," he whispered, yawning again. "Yeah, she's a good dragon. She's a good daughter."

[…]

Seto stared at Ty, who looked away immediately. "Ty, what did you do?"

Ty turned around, stuffing his hands into his pockets. Seto stared past him, at the obsidian cage. Agnus cried out for him, stretching a paw out between the bars. "T-Ty. Why did you do this? What…"

"I'm sorry, Seto. She killed four people two days ago. It's wrong. Be happy the city didn't vote to kill her. Be happy she's one of the last of her kind. Be happy she's alive."

"How could I _possibly_ be happy?!" Seto shouted, hands curling into fists. "You told everyone! You locked her up!"

His gaze travelled back to Agnus, and he tried to run forward. Immediately, several police officers tackled him, keeping him away from his daughter. "Agnus!" he screeched in Rune. "Agnus!"

"Seto, stop. She'll be transported back to the End. She'll be safe there," Ty said, turning back towards him. Seto shook his head, trembling. Magic sprung up, shoving the officers away. "Agnus!"

"Seto, stop!" Ty grabbed his wrist as Seto tried to run to the dragon. "Stop, you won't be able to do any-"

A rope of silvery magic curled around Ty's waist, hefting him into the air and tossing him around. "You're a monster, Ty! I hate you!" Seto shouted, not even bothering to switch back to Craftian. Ty would get the point. "I wish you were dead! I wish you had never saved me!"

Ty was dropped to the ground, and Seto tried to run back to Agnus. He kicked at the ground and a chunk of grass lifted him into the air. He reached into the cage, hand running across Agnus' nose. "I'll get you out of there. I will, don't worry."

An arrow whizzed past his head. Seto whipped around, arms spreading out to his sides to protect Agnus. His brown eyes located Mitch, who was aiming another arrow. Sundee started to run at him, diamond sword raised. Sky and the others were there, soon.

Seto swallowed and raised a hand. A tendril of purple and silver snaked around Jason's ankles, yanking him down from the air and onto Mitch. Another few tendrils of magic snapped away at the others, keeping them from getting close. An arrow pierced Seto's shoulder. He cried out but ignored it, too intent on keeping everybody away from Agnus.

The dragon suddenly roared, trying to escape the cage. Seto turned to find Ty standing under her, iron sword gleaming in the light reflecting off of her purple scales. He set the blade under one of the plates, turning it slightly.

"Agnus don't move!" Seto cried, breath hitching in his throat. "Don't move!"

The dragoness stilled immediately, violet eyes bright with fear. Her tail was trembling as Ty pressed the flat of the blade against her.

"Seto, we didn't want to do this. Please, just calm down and Agnus won't be hurt."

The chunk of earth under his feet shifted slightly, dropping a few inches. "How did you-"

"I've been doing some research," Sky muttered, raising his elbow slightly as a warning. "Just go back to the ground and walk away, Seto. Then everything will be fine, and Agnus will be sent to the End."

"But it wasn't her fault, she was just trying to-"

"Go!" Ty snapped, fury erupting in his rusty red eyes. "Seto, it _is _her damn fault! Get down on the _fucking_ ground and walk away!"

He grass block immediately dropped to the ground, and the sorcerer staggered away from Ty and Agnus. His daughter keened sadly, raising one clawed paw. But with a jab from Ty's elbow, she set it down again.

"Ty, why are you-"

Seto's shoulders were grabbed, Mitch and Jerome pulling him away from Agnus. She cried out for him, eyes hurt and shocked.

"Agnus… Agnus! Let me go! Let me go!" Seto screamed, trying to kick at the two. "She didn't mean to! They had attacked her first!"

_"Seto, kill them! You worthless idiot! You're letting your own daughter get sent away! Can't you do anything right?"_

"Please," Seto whispered, tugging against the two as Ty set the sword down. "Please stop."

Ty shook his head and turned away, slipping back out of the cage from between the bars. "Sky, can you come help me here? I need you to stand next to Ag- the dragon. Just let me talk to Seto, I'll get it all straight."

Sky nodded and briskly walked over to the Ender dragon, hand sitting on the hilt of his sword. "Yeah, of course."

So Seto was pulled away from his daughter, unable to do anything in fear of her being hurt. He bit his lip, shrugging Mitch and Jerome away as Ty walked towards them, waving the two away. "Don't worry, it's alright. I just need to talk some sense into him."

Ty grabbed Seto's shoulder, pulling him away from the rest of the group. Once they were safely hidden behind a rock, he stopped walking.

"Seto, listen. I-"

The sorcerer wheeled around, slapping Ty across the face. "How dare you?" the sorcerer hissed, voice low. Ty winced, rubbing his cheek. "Seto, please let me explain. I was-"

"I hate you," Seto growled, shoving Ty away. "I hate you, and I wish you were dead!"

_"Are you sure you aren't talking about yourself? That would be absolutely perfect, you know."_

"I thought you were the one friend I had left. I thought you would have understood, but no! Instead, you endanger my daughter! You threatened to kill her, you bastard!"

Ty swallowed and looked down, sighing. "You have every right to be mad at me. But don't worry, Seto. I have a plan. I'll keep Agnus safe, okay? I love her just as much as you do."

"No you don't," Seto muttered, shaking his head. "You don't understand."

"Seto, I-"

"I thought I could trust you," Seto murmured. He took a step backwards, keeping his silvery-brown eyes to the ground. "But I guess I can't."

[…]

"Human…. Human, wake up! You are dreaming. Human- Gah!"

Seto bolted up, flinging whatever was on his chest away. There was a thump, and his gaze shot to the noise to find Gordy sliding down the wall, pulling the suction cups away from the birch planks. "Good Notch, human, why does everything try to kill me?"

"Sorry Gordy, Seto muttered, standing up and going over to the squid. He glanced around as Gordy clambered onto his arm again, perfectly happy to have the ride. "But you need to stay quiet, Agnus is still sleeping."

"The dragon?" Gordy grunted, leaning his head against one tentacle. "She won't be waking up. She could probably sleep through a feeding frenzy of sharks. Look at her!"

One violet eye slid open as soon as he said that, and the side of her lip curled up in a sly grin. Gordy hmphed and fell silent.

"Gordy," Seto started, "I don't think sharks can really have a feeding frenzy on land."

Gordy grumbled something that sounded suspiciously like 'Unless it's a land shark', but Seto ignored him. He sighed and glanced out the window, setting the prince back on the couch.

_"What is that thing, Seto?"_

"It's Gordy," Seto mumbled out of the corner of his mouth, going over to the kitchen and quickly downing a glass of water that had already been sitting out. "He's a squid."

_"I don't think I was paying much attention to anything when everyone else was here. You were happy back then, so I was sleeping."_

"Yeah, I think I remember being happy," Seto said quietly, not-so-gently tossing the glass into the sink. "I wonder why everybody's been avoiding me lately."

"Seto? Are you alright? Who are you talking to?"

Seto shook his head and went back to the living room, going over to Agnus and rubbing one of the horns curling back from her head. "Nobody, Gordy. I'm perfectly fine. You wanna go visit Sky and everyone? I can carry you there."

"Sure! I haven't seen them for a while."

Agnus rumbled, sniffing and placing a paw over her nose. Seto smiled down at her, then went over to the armchair and grabbed his cloak, clasping it together with the creeper brooch. He walked back to Gordy and held out an arm for the squid to climb up on.

"Alright," Gordy said, navy blue eyes looking up at him, "Let's go!"

* * *

**Ermagerd.**

**I love him. **

**I love Gordy so much.**

**He's awesome.**

**And silly.**

**And a squid.**

**And I really loved writing for him because I haven't for a while, and I never really gave him much of a personality in Animal. So here he is. Looks like Sky's dog wanted a snack. (Any ideas for the dog's name? It's female. I couldn't figure one out.) So this chapter may have been a bit confusing, but I'm going to give you a little help here. ****Seto's age in the prologue, which is the present time, is 20. (Not sure how old he really is, twenty was just conveniently on my mind at the time.) The time skip order goes like this:**

**Age: 15, before people knew about his sorcery.**

**Age: 20, a few weeks before he got kicked.**

**Age: 20, after he got kicked, a bit before the prologue.**

**Age: 20, a few weeks before he got kicked.**

**So I think that's all of them. If I missed one, tell me. And would you guys like it if I did this at the end of every chapter? I kind of like leaving you guys to think about it, but some of you are just not any fun. I'll do it if you want me to, but I think it takes away a bit of the mystery. **

**Hope you enjoyed peoples. Look forward to the next chapter. Leave a review or favorite, it tells me that you like what I do. Thanks!**

**-Cold.**


	8. Continue to Play

"Hey, dude… Hello?"

Seto groaned, rolling onto his side. A hand shook his shoulder and he hissed, scooting away. "G' 'way…"

"Hey, he's awake at least, Ty."

"Yeah, but he isn't getting up."

"Dude, he's been asleep for almost a month. Give him some time, he might be tired."

"Sky, someone doesn't simply 'sleep for a month'. Not with the wounds he had."

"Yeah, well…"

Seto groaned again, clawing at the blankets and pulling them over his head.

"Hey look, he moved."

"Jason, could you go get some clean bandages? The ones around his head need to be changed."

Seto was aware of someone pulling the blankets away from his head. He grunted, mumbling something unintelligible. Someone started to remove the bandages around his forehead, gently pulling them away from the gash on the side of his head.

"Here you go. But we need to go get some more if it keeps up like this."

"Alright. Here, Sky, can you lift him for me?"

"Yeah, sure."

Seto felt hands lift him off the pillows, and one gently began bandaging the wound on his head. It was cold, and he was dimly aware that he wasn't wearing a shirt. After a few minutes, he was set back against the pillows.

"Alright. I guess we should let him wake up on his own…"

"Ty, who do you think he is?"

"I don't know. I just found him in the forest to the east."

"You mean the one that everybody disappears in?"

"Yeah, that one. I saw a lot of smoke coming from the other side of it, and I decided to investigate. But I found him passed out on the ground, barely alive."

"Geez, he must be lucky."

"Yeah, he is. You can sit down, Jason. I don't think he needs anymore medical attention for the time being."

There was silence for a few minutes, and there were soft noises of cards being set down on a table. Seto murmured something. "Char… don't, no…"

"Has he been doing that a lot?"

"Yeah, he keeps saying something about fire and a guy named Charley. I'm not sure."

"You know, I heard a wizard guy came to the city a month or so ago. Said his name was Charles or somethin'."

"Really, Sky?"

"Uh-huh."

"What do you think that means? Do you think this guy is a wizard?"

"He does have that staff, you know."

"Yeah… Where'd you put that thing, Sky?"

"It's in my room. That's the only room here that locks besides the bathroom."

"Doesn't mine?"

"No, Jason… Here, I win."

There were groans, and Seto could hear cards flutter onto the table as the voice that the other two identified as Sky broadly boasted at how he was the best in a game of cards. "Drag…. Burned down the… the…"

"He's doing it again, Ty. It's freaking me out."

"Just be patient Sky. I'm sure he'll stop once he wakes up."

[…]

It was several days later when Seto's eyes finally fluttered open. He groaned and blinked up at the spruce planks ceiling. It took a few minutes for his brain to catch up with him. When he was finally able to make a full thought in his head, he said it aloud.

"What… Where the hell am I?"

There was a sound from the other side of the room. Seto propped himself up by his elbows, glancing around the room. There was a window directly next to him, on his right. There was a table to his left, three chairs sitting around it. A chest was sitting at the end of his bed, and a wardrobe against the wall in front of that.

But what caught his attention was the teen sitting in a chair, head lolling to the side and chest rising and falling. His eyes were closed, and the black and green headphones were around his neck.

Seto groaned as he sat up, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed, hissing in pain. He reached down to rub his right leg; the one he had thought was broken. It was tender, but there wasn't a heavy cast around it. So whoever patched him up had figured out that it wasn't broken. That was good; it made it easier to get out of there.

He glanced towards the sleeping teen, slowly and carefully standing up. Seto glanced down, just now noticing he was only in boxers. His face flushed and he glanced around the room. The wardrobe or chest seemed like the best place to keep clothes. Seto quickly made his way over to the wardrobe, hand pressing against his ribs, which he assumed were broken.

He collapsed against the wall, breathing shallow so he didn't cause too much pain to his ribs. He glanced at the teen again, then slowly opened the wardrobe. Inside were various T-shirts, most white or grey. Seto swallowed and grabbed one of them, then glanced down. Jeans lay in neat, folded stacks at the bottom. He took the loosest pair, then sat down on the chest and hurriedly got dressed.

Seto glanced down at himself, frowning slightly at the v-neck t-shirt and baggy jeans. They would have to do until he got his robes back. He glanced at the chest he was sitting on, then stood and opened it.

Inside was an assortment of materials, ranging from blocks of iron to torches. He took out the iron sword, holding it close. Seto didn't want to use it, but it was better to have some kind of self-defense if the people here decided to attack him. He looked back over to the teen, sighing slightly. "Thank you," he whispered and glanced out the window.

Moonlight was streaming in through the cloudy sky, and judging by its phase, he had been out for a while. Seto frowned and walked to the window, opening it and looking down. It was too far to drop down, and he estimated that he was on the second level of the house.

His gaze traveled away from the back yard, towards the lights of a city. His heart sank at the sight of the electricity and pollution billowing out of factories. That used to be his village—his old home.

Seto sighed again. He'd have to start all over.

He turned around to go towards the door leading out of the room and came nose-to-nose with the teen.

"Where do you think you're going?"

[…]

_"You know what, Seto?"_

Seto's shoulders slumped slightly and his scowl deepened. "What do _you_ want?"

_"Stop being so rude, dumbass. You're a worthless piece of crap, remember that... But I just realized something."_

Seto clenched his teeth, hand curling into a fist on top of his desk. "And what would that be?"

The voice was silent for once, and then; _"I only want you to die when you're either angry or sad… I think your emotions have something to do with it."_

Seto sighed through his nose angrily. "Go to Nether."

_"Where do you think I came from?"_

"Oh, I always thought you came from some lame curse. Isn't that part of the prophecy? Hmm?"

_"… I hate you so, so much. Once I'm free, I'll-"_

"You'll never be free," Seto snarled, eyes narrowing. "That's why I'm here."

The voice fell silent, and Seto took the opportunity to talk freely. "Even if I die, so will you. I'd rather take my own life than set you free!"

_"That…. That can be arranged…"_

Seto growled and stood, nearly tipping his chair over backwards.

_"I mean, I see why you helped those pathetic traitors of yours. You felt sorry for that stupid squid guy, didn't you?"_

"Don't talk about them. It's too soon."

_"That's a load of crap. It's been half a month, get over it. You know that they were always using you. They never were friends. Maybe in the beginning, but don't you remember how when you had gone out on your own they only came to visit if they needed something? You're pathetic, wizard. You know that?"_

"I'm not a fucking wizard!" Seto screamed at the wall, picking up a book and hurling it towards the oak planks. "I'm not! Stop saying that!"

_"Seto, even the gods would agree with me. It's part of the prophecy. Do I have to tell it to you again?"_

"Don't," Seto snarled, tugging on his hair. "Don't you freaking _dare_."

_"One will be chosen to carry the Shadow's Curse. The One will live through struggles and grief. The One will die, only to be brought back. The One will be abandoned, and then betrayed once more. And then the One will die, and another One will be chosen. The cycle will repeat and repeat until the Shadow's Curse has finally given up. But the chosen One, after fifty others, will wield great power. The One will be a Wizard, and the One will-"_

Seto was shaking his head, leaning against the wall. "No! Stop! Leave me alone, leave me alone!"

_"… Very well, Seto. Or would you rather be called Wizard?"_

[…]

"Charley, I still don't get the difference between wizards and sorcerers," Seto murmured, pencil tapping against the desk.

"Well, Seto," Charley began, biting his lip. He glanced down at his tea, frowning slightly. "It's very difficult to explain…"

"Tell me anyway. I want to know. Please, Charley?" Seto pleaded, light brown eyes wide with the want to know. Charley sighed and sat back.

"It began hundreds of years ago…"

"Two families were living in peace. One studied the ways of peace and life, the other learned malicious spells and potions. The Sorcerers and the Wizards. They were nowhere near each other, and they preferred it that way, but they never really quarreled with each other. There was no need to, seeing that the world was peaceful. But one day, two of them crossed words."

"Why did they do that?"

"Well, a Sorcerer had something a Wizard needed. So they fought. And being the weaker of the two, the Sorcerer was killed. Wizards started attacking the other family, and Sorcerers had nothing to defend themselves but their magic and spells. The Wizards had potions and dark magic, and easily beat the Sorcerers away."

"But…"

"Hang on, Seto. I'm not finished."

"No, I just want some reasons why there's a difference between sorcerers and wizards."

"… Wizards go insane, Seto. Instead of doing what we do here in the Guild, they work on destruction. Wizards have a sense of bad luck—like a crow. Evil and destruction follows them everywhere they go."

Charley stood and said, "I must be leaving now, Seto. I hope that answered your question."

"But wait, that didn't-"

"Goodbye."

"Charley, that didn't help! I… I still don't know…"

[…]

Seto backed up until his knees bumped the edge of the bed. He swallowed, weakly lifting the iron sword and pointing it at the teen.

"Hey there. I don't think you should be using that thing. You're going to open your wounds."

Seto scowled, hands trembling as he scooted towards the window. "G-get back. Stay away from m-me…"

"Sky, Jason!" the teen called, never moving his eyes away from Seto's. "He's up!"

There was a thud from outside the room and then the door swung open, two young teens tumbling into the room. They stood next to the rusty-eyed kid. One with a golden and amethyst pendant hanging from his neck smiled. "I'm Sky! This is Jason," h gestured towards the kid with a blue and orange helmet in his hands. "And the kid you're currently pointing my sword at is Ty."

"Hey, who said it was your sword?" Jason cut in, sending a sharp glare at Sky. "I thought it was mine."

Seto's jaw clenched and he back up again. He was visibly trembling from the strain of holding up the heavy sword; he was still weak and he knew he couldn't get very far if he tried to run.

"Now that we know each other," Sky continued, ignoring Jason, "How about you put that sword down? And tell us your name, maybe?"

Seto shook his head, pointing the sword at Sky. "S-stay away."

_". . . Just kill them and get it over with. Trust me; you'll thank me later if you do."_

"Shut up," Seto hissed through clenched teeth.

Ty took a few steps towards him, reaching out a hand. "Hey, listen to me. I dragged you all the way home and patched you up. I even made a healing potion to help speed up the process, too. Do you honestly think we'll hurt you? You've been asleep for almost a month now. We had plenty of time to kill you and take all your stuff. Why would we do it now?"

Seto swallowed, blade lowering slightly. "I…"

"Look," Ty continued, walking towards him. He gently took the sword out of Seto's hands, then tossed it towards the wall. "See? Nobody's going to hurt anybody. So what's your name?"

". . . I-I'm Seto."

"So, Seto," Sky said, coming up next to Ty. "You should thank us for saving your life."

"Sky-"

"Th-thank you," Seto said, but he took a step back. "I appreciate it. But I think I need to get going."

But Ty shook his head, gently grabbing Seto by the shoulder and leading him towards the bed. "No, you're still hurt. You need rest and food; you've barely eaten anything while you were out."

Sky nodded, smiling brightly. "I'll go get the soup we made earlier!"

Jason sat down in one of the chairs, frowning at Seto. He glanced towards the door as there was a loud crash, followed by a rather vulgar curse from the butter-lover. Ty snorted and smirked. "I'll go help him. Stay here, Seto. Jason, could you make sure he doesn't try to get up or anything?"

Jason nodded, setting his space helmet on the table. Seto stared at it for a moment, and his gaze turned to Jason. "Do I…"

"Hmm?" Jason asked, turning back to Seto. "Do you what?"

Seto's eyes narrowed slightly, opening his mouth to speak. But then Sky paraded in, holding a steaming bowl of soup out on front of him. "I so totally got this by myself! I'm not short!"

He handed it to Seto. The sorcerer looked down at the bowl, then up at Sky. Now that he looked, it turned out Sky was actually about four or five inches shorter than Ty, who was walking up behind him. "Um, I don't have a…"

"Here, Seto. Sky forgot to get you one," Ty said, whacking Sky on the shoulder as he handed a spoon to Seto, who took it with a grateful nod.

As soon as the bowl was in his hands, Seto suddenly felt the gnawing hungry in his stomach. He choked down the food, barely tasting it. And once the bowl was scraped clean, he sat back and smiled.

"Hungry, Seto? Geez."

Seto's face flushed and h opened his mouth to retort, but Ty waved a hand. "I can't blame you."

[…]

"So what happened, Seto?" Sky asked over a game of cards. The other three and dragged the table over to the bed so they'd have a fourth chair. "You were all burnt up when Ty brought you back here. He said there was a lot of smoke coming from deeper in the forest."

Seto frowned lightly, moving one of his cards. He set it down next to the neat stack on the table. "Any threes, Ty?"

Ty glanced up at him, then back at his cards. "Go fish."

Seto swallowed and took a card from the upside-down stack. "Well, Sky… I was, um…"

He couldn't tell them the truth. Sorcerers weren't very welcomed around the city, and Seto knew that very well. His old village, which turned out to be next to the city instead of the city itself, had a few survivors. They had spread the rumors of magic-users around, giving them a bad rep and twisting the tales until wizards _and_ sorcerers were evil.

"Well, I was travelling. And I saw something in the distance," Seto began, glancing at Sky. "It was shining in the sunlight, circling in the air. At first, I had no idea what it was. But as I got closer, I saw that it was a-"

"Do you have any sevens?" Jason asked Sky, interrupting Seto. Sky grumbled something, throwing a card at Jason. "Continue, Seto."

"It was a dragon."

This earned him stares from all three of them. The cards in Ty's hand dropped to the table, clearly showing the numbers. "Wha-what?" he sputtered, eyebrows arching. "A _dragon_?"

Seto nodded, swallowing. "Yeah… It was burning down a… a village. There was this one guy, dressed up in robes, fighting the beast. He was using this staff with a sapphire, bending reality and casting spells. I… He was cut down by the dragon, making him sail through the air. He crashed into a smoldering house next to me. I ran in, but he was being crushed under a fallen beam. He gave me the staff and told me to protect it with my life."

"What happened then?" Jason asked eyes wide with curiosity. He reminded Seto of the younger apprentices that had always listened to him read books aloud in his free time.

"Well, I did my best to protect it. The dragon chased me through the forest, burning me and cutting me up. Once it picked me up by my shirt and flung me into a tree with a simple flick of its wrist. The dragon was huge, guys! It was three times the size of this house!" Seto spread his arms, as if that would even come close to the dragon's size. "Just one of its talons was bigger than Sky is tall!"

"Well that's not saying much," Ty joked, smirking. He picked his cards up, nearly dropping them again when Sky elbowed his arm. "Hey!"

Seto nodded and sat back, smiling. "Yeah… I tried to run away, using the staff as support. The dragon didn't come back, and I was surprised. I was probably lying on the ground for a good hour before I heard someone walking through the forest."

Ty nodded. "I found you and brought you back here."

Seto bit his lip and looked down at his cards. "Hey Jason, do you have any tens?" Jason tossed two cards over to me. I smiled and set my two down with the new additions. "You know, guys, I think I'm winning."

Grumbles circled around the table, and Sky bent closer to his cards, holding them up to his nose as if that would help. "Yeah, yeah, whatever."

They continued playing for a few minutes. Seto set down another group of four, adding a point to the paper in the center of the table. After a moment, he looked up. "Do you guys, by any chance, have the staff here? I was going to trade the gem off and get some money from it."

"Yeah, it's in my room," Sky answered, "Do you have any ones?" He looked over at Ty. The headphone-wearing teen gave him a blank look.

"You asked me that last time, and I haven't drawn since. Really, Sky?"

"Yeah, really. I think you're cheating. Every time I ask you for something you say go fish!"

Ty shrugged. "I'm not cheating."

"Sure you are! Let me see your cards!"

Sky leaned over the table, pushing down the top of Ty's cards. "Look, there's a ten! You're such a cheater, Ty!"

"Hey, that's just a one! Sky, you big ass! Stop looking at my cards!"

"You wouldn't be shouting if you weren't guilty! Let me see them again!"

"Hey, no! That's against the rules!"

Seto looked at the two then glanced over at Jason. He still couldn't shake the feeling that the teen looked familiar. "Do they do this all the time?"

Jason shrugged. "They didn't when you were out cold, but I think that's because they didn't want to wake you up."

Seto nodded, then shifted one of his three cards. "Do you have any tens, Sky?" he asked, a sly smile creeping up his face.

Sky flushed red, and he grumpily handed his one ten over to the sorcerer. "Yeah," he mumbled.

Seto smirked and tossed down the four cards, all tens. "I win, then."

"What?"

"How is that fair?!"

"I knew it."

Seto sat back with a triumphant smile, intertwining his fingers behind his head. A warm feeling pounded in his chest, making his smile brighten. For the first time since he joined the Guild, he felt what having friends were like.

He just hoped it never ended.

_"… I warned you, Seto. For once, I feel sorry for you, you freaking idiot."_

* * *

**Hehehe... So guess what guys. I goofed. I screwed up.**

**This was supposed to be chapter five, I believe. And... it's not. Yeah, so it _might _explain why some of you are confused... So remember that time that I said I had written a few chapters, but they had somehow gotten deleted? This is a backup of one of those chapters, and I just now found it... So yeah! Expect a double post of this story later today! (You know I could totally rearrange all the chapters and everything, but with the format I'm using I don't think it matters. It'll just seem a bit out of place).**

**So I hope you e joyed this strange, unexpected chapter. And if the lack of sleep is really getting to me, and I actually _have _posted this chapter, please tell me. But yeah, tell me what you think. I'm glad I caught this before posting the next chapter. Because if I didn't, it would have made everything so stupidly complicated.**

_**Time skip order:**_

_**13, Seto woke up a month later after the battle with the red dragon at the Guild.**_

_**13 again, a few days after the first part.**_

_**20, after he was kicked. He's in his own house.**_

_**10, in the Guild. The dragon hadn't come yet and everything was peaceful at the time.**_

_**13, a direct continuation of the second part.**_

_**13, a few days after the 2nd and 5th part.**_

**Hope you enjoyed and hope that helped,**

**-Cold**


	9. The Game of Life

Seto stumbled into his house, tears blurring his vision. Agnus was gone. She was gone. She was gone. She was gone.

It was his fault. His fault.

_"Your fault, you stupid wizard. You lazy, useless and incompetent waste of space! It's YOUR fault!"_

"Shut up," Seto whispered, holding his hands over his ears. "Shut up. Please, shut up."

_"Why the Nether should I shut up? If anyone should shut up, it's you! It was your fat mouth that got her sent to the End! And now some adventuring 'hero' is going to go and kill her someday! She's going to die, Seto, and it is YOUR FAULT."_

"Stop!" Seto screamed, shaking his head furiously. "Stop, please stop!"

_"Should I, though? If I stopped, then you'd be completely alone! Face it, wizard, nobody wants you! You should have just died when the damn dragon destroyed the Guild! You should have burnt to death! You should have stopped it before it ever started! You should have listened to me! If you had, and if you had killed Ty, then none of this would have happened!"_

Seto screamed, whipping a hand through the air and sending a bookshelf toppling over onto the ground. "Stop! Please, stop!"

_"You still have a chance, you know… Wish it all gone. Wish it, Seto. Wish."_

Seto shook his head, trembling in fear. "No, I won't."

_"You trusted him. And look at where THAT got you. Make them feel your pain. Kill him, useless! Kill him!"_

The power of the voice rose in his mind, and Seto found himself stumbling towards his bedroom. He ran to the chest in the closet, swinging the lid open and yanking out the ruby red scale. His hands shook as he stared down at it. Even with the lights in the room off, it glowed slightly, humming in his hand.

_"Go on. Make them pay. Make Sky, Jason, Mitch, Jerome, Sundee, Husky, and Ty PAY. Kill him, Seto," _the shouting turned into a purr at the end. _"Make them feel what you feel."_

"I wish-" Seto choked out, sobbing. He dropped the scale, holding his head. "No, I can't do it! I can't. He saved my life."

_"But he also destroyed it."_

Seto took the scale back into his hand, looking down at the crimson gleam. "I wish… I wish Ty were- I wish-"

He sobbed and threw it across the room, turning his back to it. "I can't do it."

_"Then I will."_

Seto shivered and held his head, trying to keep the surge of evil away. "No! I won't let you! You aren't going to kill him!"

Suddenly he couldn't see out of his right eyes. For a moment, he paused, and then the voice blocked him out, shoving him to the back of his mind. Seto tried to cry out, but found his voice muted. He mentally clawed at the reigning voice, trying to bring it away.

But then he felt the world sway around him as the voice forced his body to move, crawling across the ground until it grabbed onto the scale.

_"I wish Ty were dead."_

Seto gasped and the numbness suddenly left his body, and he was in control again. The voice lingered at the back of his mind, pride coming off it in waves. Seto cried, bending over the ruby scale in his hands. Tears dripped down his chin, falling onto the scale.

"No, no. I didn't… madam, please. I wish Ty was alive."

_"You know the rules Seto," _the voice hissed, sounding smug. _"Wishes can't be undone."_

[…]

"Ty, what's wrong?"

"I-I don't know. I just feel…"

"You don't look so good. Sky, come here."

"What's wrong? Hmm? Ty, are you okay?"

"I think-"

"Oh, that's not good. Ty? Ty! Wake up, buddy!"

"Sky? Jason? What's wrong with Ty?"

"We don't know, Ian. Hang on… he's not breathing! Call an ambulance! Ty!"

Ian whipped out his cell phone, quickly dialing the three-digit number. "We need an ambulance! My friend fell over, and he isn't breathing? What? I don't know. Guys, does he have a pulse?"

"Notch, no he doesn't! Ty! Sky, do you know CPR?"

"Yeah, get out of the way."

Sirens came roaring down the road not five minutes later. But by then, they at least had Ty breathing. "Ty, come on buddy, stay with us. We'll get you to the hospital soon. Okay?"

"Sk-"

"Ty? Come on buddy, keep your eyes open! Ty?"

The ambulance roared to a stop, and the medics quickly jumped out with a stretcher, getting Ty onto it. Wordlessly, his three friends followed them into the back of the ambulance. Then they were off.

[…]

"I'm sorry," Seto whispered, curling into a ball against the bathroom wall. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

_"Why are you sorry? Isn't this what you wanted?"_

"No!" Seto sobbed, hitting the side of his head against the wooden wall. "No! I didn't want to kill anybody! I didn't want to!"

His hand was firmly wrapped around the blade of a knife, blood dripping from his palm. His sleeves were rolled up, gashes crisscrossing each other in a bloody mess. "I killed him. I didn't want to kill him. I hate you! All you've done is made my life miserable!"

The voice laughed, and for a moment its echoing voice cracked and sounded a little less masculine, verging onto female. _"Is that so? I've helped you more than you could have helped yourself!"_

Seto sobbed, shaking his head. His fingers tightened around the blade, bringing a sharp stab of pain racing up his hand. "No… No, you've done nothing for me."

_"Hmm… What if I tell you that without me, you would have died when you were born?"_

Seto froze, brown-silver eyes widening. "Wh-what?"

The voice laughed again. _"You were stillborn, wizard! Your father wanted nothing to do with you, and he placed a spell over you when you were still in the womb! He killed you, Seto! And if it weren't for me stumbling upon you, you would be dead!"_

"No… No, you're lying."

_"Even now, if you wish me gone you'll die! I'm the only one who can keep you alive! You're stuck with me."_

Seto shook his head, sliding down so he was lying on the floor. "No…"

The voice laughed once more, then struck the killing blow. _"And guess what Seto?"_

"…"

_"Ty's dead and it's not even my fault. Because if you weren't here, then I wouldn't be here. And after all, you're the one who went and found that scale. YOU killed him, Seto. You killed one of your only friends that you had left."_

[…]

"Human?"

Gordy slapped the door with a tentacle, navy blue eyes staring up. "Human, are you in there? Where is your dragon?"

He sat there for another few moments and glanced around. The dog was sitting in her usual place, staring at him with a feral snarl. He growled back at her. "Leave me alone, ya mutt."

She barked at him, tail thumping against the ground. She stood and shook her shaggy golden-brown fur, padding over to the prince. He reached up and clambered onto the lamp, like always. "Hey, I told you to stay back there."

She whined, ignoring him, and scratched at the bottom corner of the door. With a bark, she looked up at him, then back to the door.

Gordy stared at her, then stretched out one of his longer tentacles and wrapped it around the doorknob, suction cups helping him twist it. The dog instantly nosed the door open, tail tucked between her legs. She looked up at him, ears twitching. Gordy sighed and slid off the lamp, landing on her back. "Good girl."

Over the months, they had grown into a love-hate relationship. Gordy had a routine by now. He'd try to stop by Sky's house, but then the dog would run him off and he'd go to Seto's house. Then she would bark for a few minutes while Seto brought him inside. He'd look out the window and she would do a little bunny hop before turning around and going back to her owner's house.

But today, Sky hadn't been there and Gordy had to slip into the house through a window to let her out of the door. She had seemed worried and allowed him to ride on her back to Seto's house. They had stopped at Jason's home, but he was gone too. So was Ty.

But what really worried him was how Seto wasn't there. He swallowed and looked around, sliding off the dog's back. She padded over to the hallway, going to the door at the very end and scratching at it again. Gordy quickly made his way over to her, reaching up and turning the doorknob.

Squids have an excellent sense of sight, especially in dark places. And when he swung the door open, he didn't need the lights to see the pool of crimson quickly spreading out around the limp form of the sorcerer.

[…]

"Sky, I'll stay here. You go get everyone else okay?"

Sky opened his mouth to protest, but Jason shook his head, holding his hand up. "Sky, it's okay. Ty'll be fine. The doctor's already said he'll wake up later."

Sky sighed and turned, reaching into his pocket for the keys to his car. He paused. "But I don't even have a car."

Jason blinked. "Oh…"

Suddenly Sky's phone rang. He frowned and looked at the number, then showed it to Jason. The spaceman shrugged, not recognizing it. Sky sighed and answered it anyway.

"Hello?"

"Sky! Sky, it's Gordy! Something's wrong with Seto!"

Sky held his phone away from his ear, wincing. After a moment of having the squid prince freak out, he said, "Gordy, Gordy slow down. What's wrong with Seto?"

Jason's face pulled into a slight frown at the sorcerer's name and he turned back to Ty, who groaned and shifted on the hospital bed.

"He's dying! There's so much blood Sky! I don't know what to do!"

"Wh-where are you?"

"I got to a payphone using your dog as a horse. Seto wasn't waking up, and I had no other option. But Sky, I'm scared and he's going to die. Please. I know it's been rough between you guys, but he really needs help and I can't do anything."

"Sky, what's wrong?" Jason whispered. Sky glanced at him.

"Sky, please… I don't want to lose him."

Sky sighed and looked at Jason. "Seto's dying," he said quietly, holding his hand over the speaker of his cell. "I need to help him." He pulled his hand away and said, "Okay Gordy. You need to listen to me very carefully."

"Listening."

"I need you to call Jordan. He can get Seto help, okay?"

"Who's-"

"You'll see when he gets there," Sky interrupted. He continued to tell the squid Jordan's number, trying to calm him down as much as possible. Finally Gordy said he'll do his best and hung up.

Sky turned to Jason. "Gordy says Seto's hurt badly. Jordan should be able to get him and teleport him here, but I don't think we can do much."

Suddenly Ty's rusty eyes fluttered open. He coughed one word: "Bastards."

"Wh-what?" Jason sputtered, looking down at him in surprise. Ty returned the stare, gaze even. "Don't deny it," he said, voice hardly above a whisper. "This wouldn't have happened if you had just talked everything out instead of making stupid and rash decisions."

Sky opened his mouth to object, but with a sharp glare from Ty he quickly snapped his jaw closed. Maybe what they said was true:

Silence was golden.

* * *

_**Time skip order**_

_**20, after Agnus was transported back to the End. This was a bit after the cage scene two chapters ago.**_

_**20, moments after the 1st part.**_

_**20, an hour or so after the second part.**_

_**20, same setting, after the third part.**_

_**20, centering around Sky, Jason, and Ty. IN the hospital, after the 2nd part.**_

**Sadly, this story is almost over. And I don't plan on making another sequel, so this series is finally drawing to a close. There's always the one-shots, of course. I don't plan to get rid of those unless none of us can think up any prompts. **

**So I hope you enjoyed. And I'm sorry that this got dark, but I warned you at the beginning of the story. Thanks for reading guys, you're awesome.**

**-Cold.**


	10. And Stay Awake

Jordan was having a fairly good day.

A group of knights had come back to his kingdom, draped in gold and jewels and carrying chests of treasures and riches. Trade was flourishing ever since they had finally built a road to the other kingdoms in the east and south. For once, it wasn't raining at Jerry's Tree, and he hadn't run into a single mob.

Today, by far, was one of the most pleasant days he has had in a long time.

But when his phone rang, interrupting his conversation with a merchant at the marketplace, his good mood had plummeted.

"Is this Jordan?"

"… Yeah. Who's this?"

"I'm Gordy, but there's no time to explain. I need you here, right now. S-Seto's… He's hurt, and th-tere's blood. Please, I need you here. Seto's… I don't think-"

Jordan frowned. "Okay, okay. Calm down. I'll be right there."

"T-thank you. Please hurry."

Jordan ended the call and turned back to the woman, nodding his head. "Forgive me, but I must be going."

"Of course, my king. Fare travels."

Jordan nodded and turned. He walked at first, but then broke into a run as worry gnawed at his stomach. He glanced around, slipping into a small alley in between two houses. He took a deep breath and looked up at the sky. Lightning flashed, and he was gone.

**[…]**

"Seto?" Gordy whined, shaking the sorcerer's shoulder. "Seto, please wake up."

Seto grunted, eyelids heavy. But he opened them a crack and murmured one word. "Sc-scale…"

Gordy paused. "Scale? What do you mean?"

"Sc-sc…"

"Alright, alright. Scale, I gotcha. Just… Hey girl," Gordy called the dog over. She sat down next to him, panting. "Can you find a scale?"

The dog's ears perked up and she barked softly, whining. She stood and trotted out of the room. Gordy looked down at Seto, shaking his shoulder again. "Seto? Hey look, I know I'm a squid, but you still need to look at me. I'm not that ugly, am I?"

His voice cracked at his lame attempt to make a joke. Seto's eyes drooped, and his head fell back to the floor. "Seto? Seto, please wake up!"

Lightning suddenly flashed, illuminating the room. A few seconds later, Jordan walked into the room, followed by the dog. She padded over to Seto, dropping the ruby scale next to his head.

"Seto, oh Notch," Jordan muttered, kneeling down next to the sorcerer. He gave Gordy a strange look, but didn't pay him much attention. The squid started talking, blabbering on and on in panic.

"And I just came here, like I usually do, but Agnus wasn't here, and the house was dark. So I got her to take me in here, and we found him, lying here, and-"

Jordan gently picked Seto up, surprised at how light he was. He shifted him, holding him under the knees and by the shoulders. "Listen, squid-"

"S-scale…"

Jordan glanced down at Seto, then shook his head and started walking out. Gordy glanced at the shining ruby scale, grabbing it up. He whistled and the dog came over to him. The prince clambered onto his back and she quickly carried him towards the two humans, where he reached up and set the scale on Seto's chest.

Jordan sighed and made his way out of the house, trying not to trip on any books or furniture in the way. He couldn't help but notice how run-down and beat-up the place looked. He glanced down at Seto, eyes tracing the wounds. The sorcerer was startling pale, and his breathing was shallow. "Hang in there, Seto," he murmured, looking up at the darkening sky. Lightning crackled far away, and he disappeared.

Gordy held up a tentacle, just about to call for the demigod to wait up. But then he disappeared, and the squid was left with the dog. He sighed and looked over at her, then once again climbed onto her back. "Do you know where anybody else lives?"

She barked and started running, back through the forest and towards the city.

**[…]**

Somewhere along the lines, someone had taken Seto out of his hands and placed him on a stretcher, wheeling him away into some hospital room. Jordan was left (more like forced) in a waiting room, worrying his head off like everybody else that was there.

People had cast him strange looks, with his bloodstained shirt, but he simply glared at them over the rim of his glasses and they looked away.

Jordan sighed for about the fiftieth time, rubbing his hand over his ear. His fingers brushed the gold crown sitting lopsidedly on his head. He hummed and took it off, turning it in his hands. Since when was he wearing this? He only wore it during meetings, or dinners. That would probably be part of the stares.

He sighed and leaned back in the plastic, uncomfortable chair, looking up at the lady at the desk. He stood and walked over to her. "Can I see him now?"

This was about the fifteenth time he had asked her, and she just shook her head again. "No, I'm sorry."

Jordan sighed, shoulders slumping, and turned back around. Suddenly she stopped him by saying, "Oh! Well, look at this. Dr. Rohaki just said he can have guests. Room 143, do I need to-"

But Jordan was already gone.

**[…]**

Ty stared blankly at the TV screen, scowling. Sky and Jason were outside, talking to the rest of the team and explaining what had happened.

But his mind was on Seto. Sky had (unwillingly) explained what little details Gordy had given him, but he needed nothing more. Ty took a deep breath, leaning his head against the soft pillows. He chewed his lip, glancing over to the window.

Seto could be dead. He could be dead, and Ty never got to apologize. He could have died thinking Ty was against him—that he had betrayed him. Seto could be dead, and it would be his fault.

He swallowed and closed his eyes, shaking his head slightly. Ty sighed and looked up at the white and blue-specked ceiling, tracing the little dots of the navy color. Navy. Was Gordy okay? The poor squid was probably terrified, and Ty didn't think the hospital would allow animals inside.

Suddenly the door opened, and in walked everybody. Ty looked up at them, raising an eyebrow. "Well?"

"The doctors don't know what happened to you," Sky said, avoiding his true question. "They think it's a heart attack, but it's like… They found nothing wrong with you. No injuries, no cancer, no sickness, no nothing. They can't explain it."

Ty frowned lightly and looked at the other five. "Is he okay?" he asked. Sky looked away, frowning down at the floor. "Well-"

"Get out of the _freaking_ way, I am _walking_ here!"

Simultaneously, all seven heads turned to look out into the hallway, where a _very_ ticked-off looking Jordan was shoving a poor nurse out of the way. He grumbled to himself, striding past their room without as much as a glance.

Ty instantly sat up, ignoring the concerned voices of his friends. Mitch set his hand on his shoulder, pushing him back down. But with one glare from Ty, he backed up. "Jordan would only be here if he's here," Ty said, swinging his legs over the edge of the bed. "I'm going to see him."

"Ty, I'm not sure if you can do that," Husky stated, going over to stand in the doorway. Ty ignored him.

"Where's my clothes?" he asked, only swaying slightly when he stood up. "Well? Come on, guys. You may not be his friends anymore, but that doesn't mean I'm not."

"Ty, you could keel over any minute-"

"Do I look like I'm about to fall over?" Ty snapped, yanking his clothes away from Jerome, who had somehow found them somewhere in the room. Jason sighed and looked away, rubbing the back of his helmet. "Well…"

"That's what I thought."

**[…]**

_"Seto?... Seto, I am sorry. But you need to wake up. Please, you're my favorite out of the other forty-nine I've been with. It would be a shame to lose you this early."_

For once, the voice was met with no reply.

_"I swear, you worthless piece of-" _It seemed to sigh, echoing inside Seto's mind. _"Please wake up. I do not like being alone. Idiot! Hey, wake up! It isn't that bad, is it? It's just a few cuts!" _It's voice cracked for the second time that day.

It growled and fought for control over Seto's sleeping mind, finally shoving his consciousness away and taking control. It's eyes snapped open, brown fading to a bright silver. It blinked once and looked around, frowning at the white walls and dispassionate paintings. But then the door was flung open, ripping Seto's mind back into place and shoving it back to the corner.

_"You little-! I hate you! Notch, let me free! You're an idiot, you're worthless, you're screwed up, you're-"_

"Seto!"

**[…]**

Jordan rushed to the sorcerer's bed, eyes flying to the heart monitor, then to the other machines that were hooked up to him. "Notch, Seto, I thought you would have died," the demigod whispered, breathing a sigh of relief.

But once again, the door was swung open and someone paraded in. Jordan whipped around towards the door, spreading one arm as if whoever it was would try to hurt Seto. But it was just Ty, trying to shove Sky and Mitch back out into the hallway. "Just stay away from him, okay? Come on, you guys suddenly care when he's dying."

Jordan walked up behind him, slipping off his glasses. "Is there a problem?" he asked, voice low and dangerous. Sky looked up at him (he was, after all, half a foot shorter than the demigod) and fumbled for words. "W-well, you see, I, uh, um… I-I-"

Jordan held up a hand and turned to Ty. "How about you explain why I found Seto passed out from blood loss?"

Ty nodded, shooting a glare towards Sky. "Yeah, I will."

"And you guys can go sit out in the hallway like a bunch of unwilling ninth graders," Jordan said, looking back at the team, who were all trying to crowd in the doorway. When they didn't move straight away, he scowled and lightning flashed outside, showing just a sliver of the rage he held back. "Now."

In a matter of a mere second, they were gone. Jordan sighed, kicking the door closed, and turned to Ty. "Alright, tell me what happened."

**[…]**

_"Seto, look. I know we've had our… disagreements in the past, but you need to wake up. Because if you don't wake up, then I can't wake up, and-"_

Suddenly it was cut off by Seto's own voice, echoing through the mind they shared. "But maybe I like the darkness."

The voice fell silent, but it spiked out in a small fit of rage. After a few moments, it sighed and said, _"You're being selfish, wizard."_

"I'm not a wizard."

On the outside, to Ty and Jordan, nothing was going on. Seto was just still asleep, silent and pale. But inside, the voice was raging.

_"See here?! This stupid, stubborn attitude is what got you into this mess in the first place! I told you to embrace it, Seto. But what did you do? You went against everything I've ever said! I warned you about Sky, Jason, and Ty! I warned you, and you STILL didn't listen to me. I also tried to warn you about Charley-_

**[…]**

_"Seto, I do not like him. He doesn't seem… right."_

The young boy's lips twitched into a from and he stared at the back of Charley's head. "Shut up," he mumbled out of the corner of his mouth, "I trust him more than I trust you."

**[…]**

_"- But even then you didn't listen to me! I saved you countless times from dragons. I even almost died once for you! And what did you say? You said-"_

**[…]**

"Leave me alone," Seto muttered, reaching for the opal scale from the Netherian dragon without trying to get burnt from the lava pouring out of the dragon's maw. "I'm busy."

**[…]**

_"- And then there was the time that I had even warned you against taking in Agnus as an egg. She has caused nothing but grief for you. Do you remember how those poor, innocent villagers had screamed as her fire came down on them? Do you remember seeing her coming home, jaws crimson with blood? Do you remember? Do you, wizard?"_

**[…]**

_"This is a bad idea, Seto. The prophecy says nothing of a dragon."_

"I don't have to follow some stupid prophecy," Seto muttered, tilting the egg slightly. He sa in front of it, smiling.

_"This will only turn out badly, you half-brained wizard."_

"So?" Seto snapped, gaze flicking up to the ceiling for a moment, as if he could glare at the voice. "I didn't want to leave her to die."

"_… Very well, but I warned you."_

**[…]**

_"Hey, idiot, look! There's your daughter, and she's… Oh Notch."_

For one the voice seemed surprised. Seto looked over his shoulder, paling several shades as Agnus landed heavily, dark blood dripping from a gash in her side. "Agnus, wh-what…"

He ran over to her, setting a hand on her neck. He raised his other hand, muttering in Rune, and the gash slowly started healing itself. Agnus looked down at him then craned her neck around as shouts arose in the forest. Seto followed her gaze, gasping when the first armor-clad knight came tramping out of the woods, sword held high.

The knight was followed by three other men, all wielding weapons and shouting at Agnus. She growled slightly, turning around and folding a wing over Seto, pulling him close. He watched, horrified, as she reared her head back, chest swelling in a great breath. And then she roared, flicked her tongue against the roof of her mouth, and suddenly fire swept across them all. They screamed. She snapped her head forward, biting one's upper body off.

Seto turned away, stomach churning, and buried his face into the scales on Agnus' side. Her chest swelled again, and a wave of heat pooled out of her mouth. He looked out, watching the violet flames dance. One man weakly raised his sword, slapping it against her foreleg. He was instantly snapped up, swallowed in two gulps.

"Agnus… Agnus, stop," Seto said quietly, running his hand across her shoulder. "Agnus, please stop."

She crooned, head drooping. Seto swallowed past the lump in his throat and walked out from under her protective wing. The knights were gone. He waved a hand, and a silvery-purple wave of magic twisted over the flames, smothering them. "Agnus…"

**_"I… I am sorry, Father. I did not want them to hurt you."_**

_"… I warned you, wizard. But you never listen to me, do you?"_

**[…]**

"So you guys abandoned him?" Jordan growled, rubbing his temples. "Why would you-"

"They did," Ty said quietly, interrupting Jordan. "I was against it. I didn't realize what they were doing until it was too late…"

Jordan nodded, leaning against the chair he was sitting in. He turned the crown over in his hands, looking over at Seto. "That would explain why h was acting so strange."

"What do you mean?"

Jordan glanced over at Ty, reaching for his shades and putting them back on. "Every time I went to see him, he'd say he was busy or something. The most I got out of him were a few sentences, and he'd go silent."

Ty sighed and looked down at the floor. "I should have tried to help him."

"Has anything else happened?" Jordan suddenly asked, peering over the edge of his shades. "Anything at all?"

"Well…" Ty thought back to the way they had to forcefully restrain Seto as they pushed Agnus back through the End portal, draped in chains and muzzled. He had never heard Seto scream like that, full of rage and fury and sorrow. He could have sworn they were chopping Seto's legs off instead of making Agnus go back where she belonged.

"Yeah… Yeah, a lot of shit happened. It's… It's a long story."

Jordan regarded him with a blank expression, still clearly holding back some form of anger. "Well," he said bluntly, "We have time."

**[…]**

There was a knock on the door. Jordan looked over at it then at Ty, who had fallen silent in the middle of his explanation. The demigod sighed and stood. "I'll go tell them off. But you can stay here. I suppose you'd want to apologize."

Ty wasn't sure if that was an order or a suggestion, but as Jordan left he did just that.

As the door shut behind Jordan, Ty stood and dragged his chair over to the side of Seto's bed. He sat there for a moment, trying to swallow the lump clogging his throat. "S-Seto."

The sorcerer was silent, but color had come back to his skin, which Ty assumed was a good sign. "Seto, y-you need to wake up now, okay?"

_Beep… Beep… Beep…_

Ty glanced at the heart monitor, ears ringing from the monotonous beeping. But that was good. The beeping was good. He glanced back at Seto, but he didn't move.

"Seto, please. I-I'm sorry we did this to you."

Silence.

"I should have- should have stopped them from taking Agnus. I-I knew how much she meant to you, but… I-I'm just so, so sorry," Ty finally gasped out, furiously wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. "I'm sorry, Seto. But please, I n-need you to wake up."

Suddenly, Seto's eyes fluttered and opened. He stared at the ceiling, vision blurry, and then slowly glanced over to Ty.

Seto's left hand tightened around the ruby scale. After a few moments of silence, he finally sighed. "Don't be sorry…"

Ty's hopes lifted slightly, but he shook his head. "No, I am. If it weren't for me, none of this would have-"

"If it weren't for you I'd be dead four times over," Seto said simply, once again staring up at the blue-specked ceiling. "And if it weren't for me, well… You wouldn't be here."

Ty frowned and looked up, tryig to find what Seto found was so interesting. "What… what do you mean?"

The reply came after a short pause.

"I wished you dead."

Ty jerked back in surprise and his gaze snapped down to Seto, who had lifted the scale over to his chest. He murmured something that sounded almost like "Madam, I wish…"

But he trailed off. Ty slowly reached down, picking the scale out of Seto's hands. Those jaded brown yes instantly snapped over, but he didn't move to take the treasure back.

"What is this?" Ty asked softly, turning the scale over in his hands.

"It's a scale. Treat her respectfully, you don't want her to be angry," Seto said simply, as if it was everyday he called an inanimate object a she. Ty frowned slightly and looked down.

"Go ahead, make a wish."

"I-I…" Ty's frown deepened, and after a moment he said, "I wish Agnus was out of the End."

Nothing happened, but Seto's blank expression finally lifted into a slight smile. "I should have known that was what you'd wish for," he said softly.

"So it worked?" Ty asked, handing the scale back. Seto nodded, sitting up. "This scale must be over four thousand years old, you know. Of course it works."

"Wait, Seto, are you sure you should be-"

"Madam, I wish I was healed."

A second later, he unwrapped the bandages on his left arm. Seto showed the bare wrist to Ty, but the scars were still there. "I'm sure I should be getting up."

He quickly ripped out the IV needles and unclasped the plastic heart monitor piece off of his finger, ripping off any other wires. "I am getting out of here. You know very well how much I hate hospitals."

He held out a hand, and suddenly a dark purple cloak appeared out of thin air. He stood, clasping it around his neck. When he turned back to Ty, he was fully dressed. It was as if nothing had happened.

Ty was halfway out of his seat when nurses were rushing in. Seto regarded them with a cold stare then glanced at the heart monitor, which had flat lined. "Oh," he said simply and started walking.

"Ty, I thank you." He glanced back at his friend, eyes sad for a moment. But then he blinked, and they were speckled with silver. "But I must be going. Say bye to Jordan for me."

"Seto, wh-"

Seto snapped his fingers, and suddenly he was gone.

**[…]**

"Agnus!"

The Ender dragon turned upon hearing her name. Her face split into a wide grin, and she took the two bounds necessary to cross the small clearing. She bent her head down and he wrapped his arms around her snout, pressing his forehead to the soft scales. "Notch, Agnus," he whispered, only feeling relief to know that she was okay and gratefulness towards Ty for wishing her back. "I thought I'd never see you again."

**_"Father." _**Agnus' voice was full of grief. She laid down on the ground, curling a paw around him in a hug. **_"Th-they said that you didn't want me anymore. They called me a monster, and they said that you… That y-you…"_**

"It's okay," Seto whispered. "Everything's alright. I would never let you go, Agnus. Why would I call you a monster? You're my daughter; I wouldn't ever let them take you."

**_"They said that you said you didn't want me, and that you'd rather go back to doing magic and potions. I tried not to believe them, but it was so hard to hear…"_**

"Agnus," Seto said, heart breaking piece by piece. "Agnus, I'm so, so sorry. I would never give you up."

**_"A-are you sure? Th-they said that I was distracting you from your magic."_**

Seto swallowed and nodded, petting her cheek. "I'd rather be powerless than not have you, Agnus. I'd trade my entire life away for you."

* * *

_**Time skip sequence**_

_**1.] Just as Gordy calls Jordan, minutes after the squid was talking to Sky in the last chapter.**_

_**2.] Gordy had gone back to Seto's house, after his talk with Jordan.**_

_**3.] After Jordan got Seto to the hospital.**_

_**4.] A few minutes after Sky's talk with Gordy. Seto is at the hospital by now.**_

_**5.] Th voice seems... concerned(?) about Seto. It takes control, but then Jordan comes into the room.**_

_**6.] Just after what happened in the part before this. Jordan comes into the room, followed by Ty.**_

_**7.] This is happening while the part before it is happening.**_

_**8.] Flashback.**_

_**9.] The voice continues...**_

_**10.] Flashback**_

_**11.] And continues...**_

_**12.] Flashback**_

_**13.] Flashing forward, but still a flashback (Makes since? No.)**_

_**14.] Back to Jordan and Ty.**_

_**15.] Ty was explaining what had happened to Agnus when TC interrupted their conversation. Jordan leaves, Ty's alone. And Seto wakes up.**_

_**16.] Seto reunites with Agnus, back at his house.**_

**So yeah, this story's looking like it's got a few more chapters left.**

**And what about this voices, huh? Maybe it isn't as bad as Seto thinks it is... (Yeah, totally expect a one-shot about it in the near future.)**

**But I hope you enjoyed. Let me know what you think. If it's bad, if it's good, or if it's just boring. I seriously don't know or not if you guys don't tell me. Thanks for your support, though. I love it, you guys are awesome and more than I could wish for.**

**-Cold**

_**Edit:**_

_**Quick question. If I were to kill off one character that is not Seto, who would you guys chose? I really need to know, give me at least two choices.**_


	11. Alive and Kicking

Seto found himself wandering. He didn't dare go back to his house, knowing that that would be the first place everybody would search. So he walked, rubbing the ruby scale with his thumbs and mulling over everything that had happened.

Ty was alive. He was alive, and Seto could feel nothing but guilt. And then he had left them alone. He didn't even thank Jordan, or Gordy. The poor squid was probably worrying his brains out.

"I do nothing but cause trouble," Seto muttered. The voice stirred, as if waking from whatever it substituted for sleep. After a moment, it hissed. _"That is what a Wizard does, am I wrong?"_

Seto fell silent, turning the idea over in his mind. After a few minutes, he spilled his thoughts aloud, even though he already knew the voice could read his mind.

"What's the difference in a name?" he asked. "Sorcerer, Wizard? All my life, I... I've kept telling myself that I'm not a Wizard. It couldn't be true, right? I-I... I thought that, maybe if I could simply refuse the notion, that it would just go away. That _you_ would just go away."

The curse was silent.

"But now I see that everything was a lie," Seto spat bitterly, glaring at the ground. "Maybe you shouldn't have ever found me, you know? Maybe, if you had just left me dead, the world wouldn't have to deal with me."

There was a sigh and Seto could tell that it was about to speak, but he snatched its chance and continued. "I mean, it's all my fault, really. I keep trying to blame you for my misfortune, but if I wasn't here, then this wouldn't have happened! I… I could have saved so much grief and pain, just by staying dead! And now I can't even do _that_."

_"... I suppose now would not be the time to explain to you how extraordinarily stupid you are. If you weren't here, where would Agnus be? She'd be dead, left behind at the very bottom of the world. And Ty? What about Jason and Sky? Weren't you the one who saved them from dying in a cave-in? Remember that, Seto? You four ad gone down under the earth, and it was only your magic keeping all of you alive for a week. And didn't you help the demigod? The world would have been destroyed if you hadn't."_

"So all these years," Seto mumbled, "And you just now tell me that I'm not useless?"

_"I think it is because we can finally agree, Wizard."_

Seto just blinked, kicking a stick out of his path.

_"See what I mean? There was no objection there to the name. Now, look up Seto. Look at where your feet have brought us."_

Seto glanced up, brown eyes travelling across the ruins in front him.

Against all odds, Seto found himself back at the Guild.

The years of neglect and ignorance left the place covered with ivy and overrun by the forest. Seto walked towards one of the gates, which had been ripped out of the ground and tossed carelessly into a tree. He set his hand against the black, rusted metal and frowned. "I should have taken care of this place," he murmured, looking up at the four towers that still stood.

_"Didn't I tell you to come back here a few years ago?"_

Seto shrugged and walked towards the part of the Guild that had survived the initial attack from the dragon. He ran his hand along the vine covered wall and stopped, pressing his palm against a cracked brick. Small tendrils of magic snaked out of his fingers, weaving into the brick. And then it shifted and floated away from the wall, along with the rest of the wall.

The sorcerer quickly snatched up the staff hat was hidden there. The familiar tingle of power raced through his body, making one side of his lips lift into a slight smirk. "Are you happy?" he whispered.

_"... Very much so, yes. I told you to do this a long time ago, didn't I?"_

"Yeah, I guess I just never got around to it."

_"Bull."_

Seto chuckled, but it seemed empty and lacking any humor. "Well, let's get this place back up and running. I'm sure the city won't notice its resources teleporting away, right?"

_"Right, I'm sure they won't," _the voice said, dripping with sarcasm. _"It would only be enough o rebuild an entire kingdom, you know?"_

With a tight grip on the staff, Seto smirked again and jumped into the air, starting the long process of rebuilding his old home.

[…]

Agnus roared, flying in circles.

Seto had been gone for a month and a half. He had let this 'project' of rebuilding the Guild consume him. She checked back with him every hour, every day, curling up around her father.

But she didn't think she could keep him there for long.

Agnus landed heavily, looking up at the towers that had blocks of stone, wood, and other building materials fly around. The Guild was being rebuilt by one person. She huffed and kept on walking, ignoring the chunks of stone flying around her.

She rounded a corner of a new building, and there he was.

**_"Father..." _**she crooned, padding towards him.

Seto blinked, silvery eyes staring at the floor. Magic swirled around him, crackling like fire. She swallowed and sat in front of him, staring down with concerned violet eyes. **_"Father, I think you need to stop now."_**

But Seto only blinked those silver-brown eyes, and one of his hands moved. Somewhere, a wall shifted a few feet to the left. Agnus swallowed and glanced around what she assumed would be some kind of courtyard then back at her father. **_"I do not think I can continue to let you do this to yourself."_**

Seto just blinked again. Agnus warbled sadly and laid down, setting her head next to him. She watched him closely, trying to ignore his starved, tired appearance. **_"Please, Father."_**

And for the first time in a month, Seto sighed and looked over at her, eyes swimming in silver. _"Leave me alone," _he hissed. _"I don't want you bothering me. Go away."_

Agnus reared up in surprise, smoke trailing from the corners of her mouth. **_"But I-"_**

And Seto looked away again, staring into nothing as he continued to build the Guild up around him. Agnus sighed and looked down at her claws. **_"I… I need to go now. I will see you later, Father. S… Stay well."_**

With her shoulders hunched and her head drooping, she turned and walked away, blinking back the tears of worry.

[…]

"Seto?"

_"It is the demigod. Why does he always have to bother you?"_

Seto blinked and lifted a shoulder weakly, hands slightly tightening their loose grip on the staff. He could only stare into space as Jordan slowly walked over to him. With Seto's mind on the magic he as currently controlling, he heard only bits and pieces of what he was saying.

So when Jordan paused, he knew to blink in response to whatever question had been posed. Something about eating, and killing himself? Was that right, Jordan? No, Seto was fine. He wasn't dying. He was right where he should be, alone and in isolation. He wasn't killing himself. He was-

And suddenly a hand clamped down on his shoulder. Seto tensed, magic slamming Jordan away, smacking him against a marble wall. The demigod groaned and stood, slowly walking back over to Seto.

_"Persistent, isn't he?"_

Seto didn't respond, because the eastern part of the Guild was drawing his attention away.

[…]

_"It is almost done. Do you need any more help Wizard?"_

Seto shook his head ever so slightly, blinking. "I d-don't think so," he croaked, having not used his voice in two months.

_"Hmm… Oh, you are missing a spot."_

Seto's wrist flicked to the side and somewhere on the other side of the Guild, a hole was filled in with stone bricks. "Better?"

_"Yes."_

"D-do you think it's… finished?" he said, clearing his throat slightly. His right hand tightened around the staff, and the sapphire's glow dulled slightly.

There was a pause, then; _"What do you think? I'm not an architect."_

"I think it is." Seto finally stood, unfolding his legs and shakily leaning against the staff for support. "Wh-when do you think people will get here?"

_"… Look over there, Seto. What is that? That white thing, the one sanding in the courtyard."_

Seto frowned and turned, but the sight that met his eyes was so unexpected it made a chuckle bubble from his throat. "Oh Notch, it's a unicorn."

_"Aren't they all dead?"_

The white mare snorted, picking at a red flower. She reared her head up, blinking deep emerald eyes at him. She whinnied, prancing over to him and butting her nose against his shoulder. Seto chuckled slightly again, patting her cheek. "They're supposed to be. They died out long before the dragons did."

_"Then why-"_

"I've been placing a spell over this as I was building it, which took up most of my attention," Seto explained, watching as the mythical horse cantered away, blue-grey mane blowing in the wind. Her tail, resembling a lion's tail, flicked around. "It draws the attention of any mythical being, magic-user, sorcerer, wizard, or anything of the sort."

_"You actually did it. You rebuilt the Guild."_

"I don't think this is just a place for training apprentices," Seto said, laying a hand on the polished marble pillars that towered up from around the courtyard. "It won' be the way it was. If people seek training, then fine. But it won't be… It won't be a guild."

_"That makes absolutely no since, but… I think I like the idea. It will give me more choices when you pass on. Please, become attached to a baby once one arrives. I do not want to be stuck in an elderly person after you leave."_

Seto let out a sigh and rolled his eyes, walking out into the sunlight. "Yeah, yeah. Male or female, orc or wizard?"

_"I'd prefer one that could replace you, if_ _possible."_

* * *

**A bit short, sort of a filler, and there aren't many characters here other than Seto. These time skips are all in order. The first one is after the hospital scene, the second is a month and a half after the first one, the second is half a month after the second, and the third is a week or so. Not too difficult to keep up with, I hope.**

**And the unicorn? Yeah, it was the first mythical creature to pop into my head that wasn't a dragon. **

**Hope you enjoyed, let me know what you think. And guys, thanks for the fifty reviews. It means a lot to me, especially on this story. I know I've had my mistakes and everything, but I really just hope you guys like what I do. And if you don't, get out. Go on, shoo. But thanks again, all the support is greatly appreciated.**

**-Cold**


	12. But Once You Lose Everything

Seto was working on the new library, sorting through the scrolls and books that had survived the attack an placing the ones he had gathered over the years. He worked quietly, diligently, and soon enough half the day had passed. But when there was a small thud, followed by an _oomph_, he whirled around, reaching for the staff.

But what he saw made him freeze in his tracks.

A little girl was frantically shoving a book back into the shelf. A boy, barely past puberty, was already scooping her up and carrying her away. He had obviously spotted Seto, and he glanced over his shoulder every second.

Seto frowned slightly and started walking over to the two, leaving the staff where it was. "Hey," he called gently, "Who are you?"

"W-we're sorry," the boy stuttered, holding the girl close. "We saw the t-towers and our pet flew away. We ran after her, through the gates, and- and now we're here. I'm so sor-"

"How did you find this place?" Seto asked, walking towards them. "What are you?"

The boy was taken aback, and his words died on his lips. Then Seto noticed his eyes, ringed with silver around the pupil and a brilliant sky blue.

_"He's got a shadow, Seto,"_ the voice hissed. _"Like you."_

The boy stared at him for a moment. Te little girl hopped forward as extended a hand. "I'm Marisa! I'm a witch!"

The boy clamped his hands over her mouth, holding her back. "Please sir," he whispered, "Please don't kill us."

_"A witch? Then he must be..."_

Seto stood there for a moment. Then he smiled and held out his own hand. "I'm Seto, and... And I'm a wizard."

The boy smiled and let go of Marisa's mouth. He hesitantly took Seto's hand, shaking it. "I'm Jake. Thank you, Seto. I haven't seen a fellow wizard since our town burned down."

Seto smiled, watching his eyes closely. Jake's own smile faded, and his eyes widened. "You're-"

Seto nodded and pointedly glanced at Marisa. "Yes. But I better show you a home. Come on, there's a really good one just outside."

[...]

_"Have I ever told you that I hate you?"_

"Yes," Seto muttered, staring up at the ceiling. "But I couldn't care less. This is my new home, you know. Be happy we aren't dying in the forest."

_"Why don't you ever listen to me?"_

"because you don't own me." He sighed, turning over on his side, looking around his new room that the four of them had managed to make the past week. "Why don't you ever leave me alone?"

_"It is physically impossible to do that."_

"Can't you just go and find a different host or something?" Seto snarled softly, fingers bunching up the sheets. "Why do you stick around?"

_"It… It isn't easy to explain, Seto. You wouldn't understand. I'll tell you later."_

"How soon is later?" Seto whispered, glaring at the wall. "For you, later is probably right before I die, seeing that you're immortal."

_"I'm only as immortal as you make me," _was what the voice said. It sighed and sent a small headache behind his eyes as it surfaced to look at the wall with him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Seto angrily shoved it back, into the darkness and away from the world. It sighed again. _"it means exactly what you think, Seto."_

"Well, I'm wishing you dead right now."

_"It doesn't work that way."_

"I wish it did…"

[…]

The first time that the attack had appeared, Seto was talking with Gordy.

He cared out, hands flying to his temples. It seemed like his brain was being crushed by his skull, squeezed and pummeled until he could hardly think straight.

"Se… to?"

"…eto? Set…"The wizard shook his head, stumbled over to the wall and sliding down onto the ground. What was happening? He could hear his name being called again, but it was fuzzy and far away. It was like he was surrounded in a bubble of foam, cut off from sounds and sights.

He could faintly hear the voice cry out at the back of his mind, but he could hardly make it out above the sound of his own screaming. Seto clutched the sides of his head, tugging at his hair. "Make it stop!" he shouted, curling into a ball and rocking back and forth. "Make it stop! Please, stop!"

"Seto! Seto! H-help! Anybody, help him!"

He weakly hit the side of his head against the brick wall, trying to get the pain to stop. "Make it stop. Makeitstop, makeitstopmakeitstop," he whispered, tears of pain streaming down his cheeks. He hit his head against the wall again, whimpering.

Suddenly, Seto was picked up. He groaned, clamping his hands over his ears. The world before him blurred, and for a moment he could only make out blobs of colors. But the scene suddenly changed, and voices rose around him. "Stop," he whispered, clenching his teeth against the pain.

Even though his ears were ringing, and he could hardly make out anything other than the voice's screaming and his crying, he somehow picked out the word 'hospital'.

"N… No, no hospital," Seto whimpered. The conversation paused and he was set down on what he assumed was a couch.

"Jordan… we do?"

"I…. think we sh…"

And almost as suddenly as the pain had struck, it faded. Seto gasped, eyes opening wide, and stared up at the faces of Jordan and Ty. They returned the stare. After a moment, Seto stood and pushed them away, stumbling over to a wall and pressing his forehead against the cool surface. "What was that?" he asked.

"Seto? Are you okay?

_"I… I don't know… I don't… I…"_

"Hello? He… Hello? Are you there?"

A hand lightly touched his shoulder, but he didn't pay whoever it was any mind. The voice gave a weak, shaky sigh and whispered. _"I don't know, Seto. But… I think I need to… to rest."_

"No. No, come back. Come back."

"Seto?" he whirled, smacking whoever it was away. Ty yelped and stumbled backwards, holding his jaw. "Notch! Where did you get that uppercut from, Seto?"

"Stay away from me," Seto said, pressing against the wall. He was scared. He never realized how much the voice had filled in the silence. He never realized how alone he would be without it. "Stay away!"

"Seto." Jordan walked towards him, holding out a hand. "Seto, it' okay. We're your friends, we're here. Gordy's here, too. See?"

True to Jordan's word, the little squid clambered up onto a lamp, waving a tentacle at him. Seto's gaze darted around the room, but it was unfamiliar. "Where am I? I want to go back. Let me go."

"Seto, you need to stay here for just a few minutes, okay?" Ty said gently, swiping a few strands of hair out of his face. "You're… You're at my house. Remember? This old house that you woke up in?"

The one that he had first met Sky, Jason and Ty in. Seto nodded, calming down slightly. "Y-you still have this old thing?"

Ty nodded, smiling slightly. "Yeah. But-"

Seto pushed past him, running towards the door. He threw it open, but froze upon the sight of the rest of Team Crafted. They glanced up, six faces turning to look at him. Sky stood, as if to ask if he was alright.

They looked concerned. They were… they were worried about him?! Seto blinked in shock, mouth twisting into a scowl. After what they did. After they had caged Agnus, abandoned him, and everything, they were _concerned_. At that realization, something snapped inside Seto. H heard the voice chuckle weakly, and suddenly a white silver curtain fell over his vision.

A snapped a hand through the air, sending a wave of magic slamming into the six. He shrugged Jordan's hand off his shoulder and ran out of the house, bounding over a downed Jerome and running past them.

A hand wrapped around his ankle, and Seto fell to the ground. He turned, already raising a hand. His silver eyes met Sky's brown and gold ones, just for a moment. In that moment, he lost all control and the voice took over.

But he could faintly hear the cry, the scream, and then the solid thump when Sky landed on the ground, twenty feet away.

[…]

_"Seto?... Seto, I am so sorry…"_

Seto groaned, eyes fluttering open. He was met with a clear sky and bright sun. A stray cloud floated overhead, too. He sat up, rubbing the back of his head. He blinked and pulled his hand away, eyes growing wide in horror at the crimson splattered across his white glove. He stood, wobbling slightly, and glanced around. Everyone was gone. Jordan, Ty, everyone. "Wh-what… What happened?"

_"They tried to hurt you, and… I… I hurt one of them. And- and the squid…"_

"Hurt?" Seto asked, turning in a full circle, horror mounting inside.

_"… Yes… Perhaps I- Maybe I should show you."_

And suddenly, a memory flashed inside his mind. He yelped, rubbing his temple. "Wha-"

[…]

"S-Seto! Please, we're sorry!" Mitch sputtered, hands clawing at the grip of steel around his neck. Seto, silver eyes ablaze, simply growled and tightened his grip. He grinned at the way Mitch gasped for air, face slowly turning a shade of purple.

But then something hit the back of his head, smacking him away from Mitch. Seto cursed, holding his head. He glared up at Jerome, who was returning the death stare with equal venom. With a twist of his hand, a tendril of silver snapped out and wrapped around Jerome's feet, tossing him away.

Seto stood, turning towards Sky, who was painfully picking himself off the ground, hand firmly clasped over his ribs. An arrow shot past the wizard's nose, barely missing him. He whirled around, waving a hand. Mitch was flung towards Jerome, landing on the bacca and sending them both to the ground.

"Seto, st-"

There went Jordan, look at him fly.

The wizard sighed in aggravation and turned back to Sky, running towards the butter-lover. Seto held out both hands, fingertips pressed together to form something akin to a cage. A bright ball of purple sparked to life, growing as he muttered words of hate into a spell. After a moment, the ball took shape, forming into a deadly point.

_"Well, Sky," _Seto hissed, gripping the spear in his hands. "_I'm terribly sorry to have it end this way."_

He brought back his hand, not registering the navy blur at the edge of his vision. With a grin, he closed his eyes and struck downwards. There was a sickening sound of flesh being pierced, and when he opened his eyes, he saw Gordy staring up at him with pain and horror bright in his navy eyes.

[…]

"Gordy," Seto cried, tugging at his hair. "I killed him. I killed Gordy. Oh Notch, I-"

_"Seto?"_

"I hate you!" he shouted, glaring at a tree. "Leave me the hell alone!"

The voice fell silent, leaving him to mourn for the prince. "Why did I… I-I was so angry. What did I do? Why was I so- so…"

Seto yanked his bloodied gloves off, tossing them away with a sob. He looked around again. After a moment of soft hiccups, he said, "It was you, wasn't it? It was you that gave me that migraine. You… You did something to me, didn't you?"

The voice's silence was enough to answer his question.

"I can't… I can't believe you. You're- You're just a demon! A curse! That's all you ever were, and all you ever will be! Get out! Leave me! I don't care if I die, just get _out_!"

_"Wizard. Watch it, you're going too far."_

"Too far?" Seto screamed, pounding his fist into the ground. "If anyone's gone too far, it would be you!"

_"I was trying to protect you! If I hadn't taken over, you would have died!"_

"You were only trying to save yourself!"

_ "Was I? Was I really only trying to save myself? Are you that empty-minded, Seto? Are you as stupid as to believe that I only care for myself? I've saved you countless times over! I warned you, I helped you, and all you want is for me to leave! If you want me to leave, go jump off a cliff! Go on, go! The world would be better off without you, anyways! Nobody would miss you! Nobody would even care! There'd be just one less danger in the world! Go on, Seto! I bet you can't do it! You can't do it because you're selfish! Go on, Wizard!"_

[…]

Seto was only half in control of his own movements. The other side of him, the tired and angry and degrading side, helped him up the stairs when Seto wanted to turn back.

_"Seto, come on… You worthless piece of nothing, get up the damn steps!"_

Seto closed his eyes against the tears, scrambling up the remaining steps. He could faintly hear his only remaining friends calling his name, way down below him.

Seto paused, turning around. He was blind in one eye, but that eye was brilliant silver. His other side growled at him, and one side of his face lifted in a scowl. _"Come on, Wizard. Keep walking."_

Seto wanted to shake his head, but all he could manage was a blink. He sniffed and spoke, using the same mouth the voice did seconds before. "I want to see something first."

_"… Fine."_

And suddenly his vision in his left eye came back, and he looked down the mountainside.

From here, he could see Ty hurriedly running up the steps towards him. But Seto had the majority of the mountain below him, and his old friend had just started running up. Seto sighed and stomped the ground underneath him. The staircase broke loose, and he was drifted to the top of the mountain.

"Alright."

_"Finally. I thought you were going to be standing there forever."_

The cry of "Seto!" came from down below. Seto scowled and made the stairs fly through the air faster. He steered them towards the waterfall, where he jumped off and landed on a rock in the center of the falls.

_"Alright, Seto. I'll get ready. Will you be able to do this? I hope you can at least get this right; it would be a first."_

He nodded, and could once again see out of both eyes. The water roared around him, echoing the storm of thoughts inside his mind.

It just had to come to this. This, of all things. After everything he had gone through. Seto swallowed and took a shaky breath. "It's… It's what has to happen. If I don't, I'll lose control again. I already killed Gordy. I don't want to hurt anybody else. Alright. Alright, alright…"

His hands were trembling as he pulled his hood off his head. He closed his eyes. "If I don't, I'll kill everybody."

_"Just get it over with, idiot."_

"Seto! No, please!"

Seto looked over his shoulder, brown eyes, flecked with silver, sadly stared down at Ty. "I'm sorry, Ty…"

The black rock underneath his feet was slippery, water droplets pelting it and him. He closed his eyes again, thinking back.

Agnus would be sad, yes. But he knew Ty would take care of her. Team Crafted? They couldn't care less. They'd most likely be smiling when his death went public. Bodil and the angels? Well, he might see them in the Aether. Jordan? With the way things had been recently, the demigod might visit him in the Nether. But nobody would really care. He was just some crack in the glass, a mistake, a dark spot in their light. He was nothing.

"Seto, don't do this! Please, come back! Seto!" Ty's voice broke, but Seto didn't turn around as the teen ran along the side of the river. They were separated by hundreds of gallons of water; he wouldn't be able to reach him unless he grew wings.

Seto swallowed, and with the roar of the water in his ears, he took a step forward.

"Seto, no!"

* * *

_**Time skip sequence**_

_**1.) A few days after the Guild was rebuilt.**_

_**2.) A week after Seto woke up. He's living with Sky, Jason, and Ty.**_

_**3.) A month after the Guild was rebuilt.**_

_**4.) After the voice took over.**_

_**5.) While the voice was in control, and while Seto was out of it.**_

_**6.) After the voice took over.**_

_**7.) Starts a few moments before the prologue, then catches up with it.**_

**So, today I'm sick. But I decided that you guys were too awesome to disappoint, and I pressed myself into writing this. But yeah, I think I'm going to go back to bed... Fevers are the worst.**

**So when I asked who to kill in this story, a lot of you said Sky. And I just now realized how much of a bad guy I made him. xD But... Then there was this one person who said I should kill Gordy, and, well... Hehe... I feel so, so bad right now. And by the way, form now on everything will be in the present. SO no more time skips. But I think this has about one or two chapters left, most likely one more and then the credits.**

**Hope you enjoyed, guys. Sorry if it seemed a little lackluster today, blame it on me being sick. Tell me what you think, though. See you guys in the next chapter.**

**-Cold**


	13. It's Only a Matter of Time

Whoever says that they see their life flash before their eyes, they're lying.

There was no slideshow, or flashes of memory, or even voices of his friends and family. There was just the roaring of the water and the wind. A light spray of fresh, cold water continuously pelted him, and the wind seemed reluctant to let him fall. But it was peaceful, and for a few moments the world seemed perfectly fine.

That is, until, a rock rudely interrupted his fall.

Seto landed on the black, slipper outcrop with a solid _thump. _He rolled, back smacking against the face of the cliff that loomed over him like death's shadow. And then he lay there, silent and limp.

_"Sssse... Set... Seta? Set... Seto... Seto, th-that... Grah!"_

And suddenly, the voice was jerked. It was almost as if something was forcefully pulling it away, out of the wizard's mind. It screamed and clawed its way back to him, metaphorical heart pounding. Suddenly, it didn't want him to die. So what if his life was crap and everybody had abandoned him. So what? The voice probably cared more about Seto than anyone, and it wouldn't let something like this happen again. _"Seto. Seto, stay alive. Seto?"_

But he was silent, eyes closed and limp as a ragdoll. The voice faintly heard a cry from above. It hissed and surfaced, grasping onto what remained of Seto's consciousness. After a moment, it growled and took control, crying out at the pain suddenly shrouding its thoughts. It gasped for breath, nearly choking on the blood clogging its throat. Its head pounded, bring a new wave of pain every heartbeat. But the voice knew that it couldn't die, so it would have to push the injuries.

With a strangled, pained sob, it rolled onto his stomach and stood, limbs shaking. The voice coughed wetly, hacking up blood that must have come from the bright pain in his sides. It shakily pressed a hand to its side then jerked away with a wail. A shard of rock, about as big as its hand, was solidly stuck in its left side. It gasped for air, leaning against the cliff and letting water pour onto its head. It looked up and around, blinking away the black spots swimming in its vision.

There was a small overhang just above its head, small chunks of rock falling from a jagged, bloodied tip. Seto must have hit that first and landed on the rock they were currently standing on. The voice coughed again, shivering. It blindly groped for the scale; Seto had kept it securely tucked in a small pocket on his belt, but now it was gone. The little bit of hope that the voice had dimmed slightly at this realization, and it sobbed in pain.

"_Stupid, fucking wizard,_" it murmured, leaning heavily against the rock.

"Seto!"

It looked up, where Ty was leaning over the edge of the cliff with a sorrowful expression. "Seto?" he called, voice cracking. The desperation in his voice, the tears in his eyes… The voice pitied him. It knew, right then and there, that if it let Seto die it would never be able to forget. It wouldn't ever forget the sorcerer or his friends or his life or anything.

Seto would live. And the voice would make sure of that.

It swallowed and glanced around again, leaning its head against the rock. It hissed in pain and gently rubbed the back of its head, where its hair was matted with dark, sticky blood. It coughed again. A glimmer caught its eye, and the voice managed to turn around, staring down at the ruby scale that was tottering on the edge of the rock. It quickly bent down, biting back a cry of pain, and scooped it up.

_"A-Adel-whatever, I wish for you to heal Seto."_

Nothing happened.

The voice scowled and shook the scale, cracking it against the stone of the cliff. _"Dammit, you piece of nothing! Do it! Do it now!"_

Still, nothing. There was no relief of pain, there was no soft glow coming from the wounds as they healed. There was nothing but empty hope.

_"You're just a fucking useless scale!"_Its voice cracked, falling out of its disguise and into its original female tone. _"You just need to work, please! What the hell is wrong with you?"_

Nothing. Silence.

_"Well?!"_

"Seto? I-is that you?"

She looked up, gritting her teeth in pain. She stared, helpless, as the teen looked down. "Seto?"

_"Crap,"_the voice muttered, looking back down at the scale. Her voice seemed to be right, now, and it was back to its echoing, airy hiss. _"Please, madam. I wish for you to help him."_

And suddenly the world disappeared beneath her feet. Darkness swathed her world for a moment, but then she found herself standing next to the teen.

"Seto! What-"

She stumbled over to Ty, clamping a hand down on his shoulder and staring at him with silver eyes that were bright with pain. _"We're dying,"_she croaked, coughing again, _"Need help, please. I'm not sure how long… How long I can… I don't think-"_

And then the voice's world seemed to sway, dipping and curving and blurring until it faded to black. She tumbled to the ground, landing with a painful _thump._

[…]

Seto's eyes opened to purple and silver fog.

He sat up slowly, hand going to his side, where there was a faint ghost of pain. The sorcerer scowled and rubbed the back of his head, wincing at the tenderness of whatever wound he got there.

_"You're awake, finally."_

Seto twisted around, glancing over his shoulder. And there was the voice, sitting cross-legged and idly inspecting its nails. It looked over at him, silver eyes still dulled with pain.

Seto turned to face it, pulling down his hood. The voice sighed through its nose and ran its fingers through is hair.

"Why do you look like me?" Seto asked after a few minutes, scowling at it. "And how am I-"

_"I take after who I'm in,"_ it said, foot tapping against the ground._ "And you're alive because I suddenly realized that I'd rather have you alive."_

"You agreed with me before that we should die," Seto muttered. "What changed your mind?"

"Well, having a rock puncture our lung certainly helped in keeping me awake," it replied, leaning its elbows on its knees and setting its chin in a palm. "That and the look of pure relief on your friend's face when I wished us back to the top of the waterfall."

Seto looked down. "Ty…"

_"Yes, Ty. He took us back to the hospital; you've been out of it for at least a week and a half. But I've had to stay awake just so you'd stay alive."_

"What do you mean?"

_"One of us had to stay alive. Seto, you should be dead right now. You have been, technically speaking. I was just keeping your body alive until I convinced them to wish you back to life."_

"With the scale?"

_"No, with a unicorn, dumbass."_ The voice smirked slightly, silver eyes shining. After a moment of a short staring contest, it scowled and nodded_. "Yes, with the scale."_

The two were silent for a few minutes. After a while, Seto stood and started walking.

_"Where are you going?"_

"I don't know," Seto muttered, wrapping his cape around his body. "Away from you."

_"What? Why?"_

Seto whirled, eyes ablaze with fury. "Did it ever cross your mind that maybe I _wanted _to die? Maybe I jumped for a reason, you know? I'm sick of everything! It's just grown too fucking hard and I don't want to deal with you, or them, or anyone anymore!"

He was just getting ten feet away when something seemed to wrap around his heart, pulling him backwards. He cried out, falling onto his rear end and gripping his chest. His heart seemed to shudder, but it was more uncomfortable than painful.

A hand gently set down on his shoulder, but Seto turned away, hiding his face. "Go away."

The voice was silent for a long time. Then it sighed and sat down next to him. Seto pulled his knees up, turning away from it. A long stretch of silence followed, but then the voice sighed again and nudged him.

_"I'm sorry, you know."_

Seto frowned into his elbow. Was the voice…? It sounded almost feminine…

He turned his head slightly, glaring at it. "Right, sure you are."

His doppelganger sighed again and fell back, lying down. _"I am, because now I know how difficult actually living is, especially under pain. Usually I'm just sitting in here, staring up and trying to think of insults for you."_

"You have my pity," Seto muttered, voice dripping with venomous sarcasm. "I mean, it isn't as if you've made my life hell or anything."

_"It's what I was made for, Seto. Jeb said the same thing to me just before he dropped me down into this world. You know, he kept me locked in a cage of thorns. Every time I moved, or even tried to breathe, I would be stung by those sharp little things. Imagine that, Seto, stuck in nothing but blackness with only pain for company. He was not like you. He could lock me away and ignore me."_

"Sure, right. You're some evil spawn of a god. Next thing you're going to say is that-"

_"I'm female? Why yes, I am. Shadows are completely opposite of their original host, so it meant gender-wise, too."_

"Disgusting," Seto spat, and turned away again. The voice chuckled dryly, twisting its- her fingers through the air. "Absolutely revolting."

_"Well, it's better than being called an 'it' all the time. I have a name, you know."_

"Why would I want to-"

_"Kerberos. Thank you, I love that complimentary glare."_

"I hate you."

_"You won't when you see the scars that I suffered through to keep you alive. Someday, Wizard, you'll thank me. Now go, you should wake up. They took you back to your own house… Everybody's worried about you, Seto."_

[…]

Seto's brown eyes slid open, staring up at the wooden ceiling. For a while, he just sat there, staring at nothing with wide eyes.

And then he moved his hand, fingers tracing over the large scar over his ribs. He took a deep breath through his nose, then let it out and turned his head slightly to look around.

He was in his living room. The fire in the hearth was crackling softly; it needed to be stoked, but the heat continued to roll out of it in waves. That was the only source of light, and there was nobody else there. He groaned and sat up, slowly pulling his legs over the side of the couch.

Seto rubbed his eyes, placing his elbows on his knees. Then he noticed them: The chains cuffed around his left wrist and tied to the foot of the couch.

_"Oh yes," _Kerberos hissed, sounding slightly ashamed, _"I may or may not have overreacted when they didn't immediately wish to heal you… So, they kind of chained us down."_

Seto scowled and weakly tugged on them, then sighed and shook his head. "Great," he muttered, leaning back against the couch. "Just freaking great."

Suddenly there was a creak as the door was gently pushed open. Seto jumped, whirling towards the noise. There was a cry of joy, and sad violet eyes lit up with joy. Agnus squirmed into the house, only able to fit her neck and head in.

Seto smiled and stood, taking the two steps towards her that the chains would allow. "Agnus!"

**_"Father! Father, you're okay! You're okay!" _**

Seto wrapped his arms around her nose in a hug, pressing his forehead against hers. "Yeah, I'm okay. It's alright, Agnus. It's alright my dear."

**_"I was so scared," _**she whispered, **_"You wouldn't come back, and the silver-eyed you kept saying you were dead. But you're here! Father…"_**

"Yes, I'm here. Don't worry Agnus, it's alright. Everything will be fine, okay?"

Agnus sniffed and brought one of her paws up, wrapping it around his body in a hug. **_"I missed you."_**

Seto hugged her tighter, heart heavy. "I'm here now. I'll never leave again, okay? Alright? Hey, look at me."

She stepped back, out of the hug, to look at him. "I'm never leaving you again, alright?" he said, running a hand over the soft scales on her nose. "I promise."

**_"C-cross your heart?"_**

Seto drew an X over his chest, nodding. "And hope to die."

Agnus paused and looked back towards the door. **_"Oh,"_** she said and backed up, pulling her head out of the house.

Ty looked in and beamed, rushing in. "Seto!"

Seto smiled and waved, but suddenly found himself tackle-hugged. "We thought you were dead! Oh my Notch, Seto, you're alive."

The words came out in a rush and Seto had a hard time following what Ty was saying. Seto smiled and stepped away, holding the teen by his shoulders. He opened his mouth, but Ty just shook his head, rusty gaze bright. "We thought you'd never wake up. Well, you were awake, but your eyes, and you weren't you, and- and…"

"It's alright Ty. That wasn't me, and I'll explain that all later. But…" Seto lifted a hand, jangling the cuffs. "If you please?"

[…]

_"Carefully… Carefully… You're going to screw it up…"_

"Shut. Up," Seto growled, grinding his teeth together in agitation. He heard Kerberos chuckle and he sighed, gently tipped the potion into the half-empty bottle.

_"You'll screw it up, Seto…"_

"Can't you just be quiet?" Seto snapped, sitting up and pulling the potion away. "I'm trying to concentrate here!"

And suddenly there was a gentle knocking, coming from behind him. Seto glanced over his shoulder. He squinted in the dark, frowning slightly. It was almost nine o'clock at night, and there weren't any lights on in the house. The only light sources were the potions, which glowed ever-so-slightly. "Who's there?"

The person cleared their throat and took a few tentative steps inside, but stopped only a foot of the way into the room.

"Come on in, I won't bite," Seto said, staring over at the figure, who moved slightly. A amethyst and gold amulet suddenly came into view, glowing in the darkness, and Seto abruptly turned back to the cauldron and potions.

He reached over for some magma cream, which was usually sitting to his left. After a moment of groping for it blindly, there was the sound of wood scraping against wood and the bowl was pushed towards him. Seto hummed thankfully and scooped a handful out of the bowl, plopping it into the potion. "What do you want, Sky?"

Sky swallowed quietly and sighed. "Seto, I…"

Seto paused and glanced at him out of the corner of his eye.

"I…" Sky sighed and trailed off. He rubbed the back of his head, which loosened the short ponytail he had. "I'm sorry for how everything happened, Seto."

Seto wasn't expecting this. But he remained silent as Sky continued.

"I didn't know how to get to you, you know? I-I want to have an excuse to give you for why it took so long for me to get here and apologize, but I don't really have anything…"

Seto grabbed a blaze rod, breaking off the end and crumbling it into the cauldron. He waved away the fumes that shimmered up, coughing slightly.

"I should have been a better friend to you…"

Seto said nothing, but he felt Kerberos start to pace. _"Seto? Are you refusing his-"_

"And I wish I could have. I'm so _sorry _Seto." Sky leaned against the table, fingers curling under te wood. He shook his head, looking down at the untidy brewing ingredients. "M-my apology's there," he said after a moment, voice hardly above a guilt-ridden whisper. "Even if you don't want it."

Seto thought for a moment. Sky was apologizing. He could either accept it or completely turn his back on Sky. After everything that had happened, after all the toil and trouble and grief, he was _apologizing._

Seto abruptly turned towards Sky, pulling his hood back slightly to stare him in the eyes. And then he smiled, holding a hand out to him. "Apology accepted. You dn't know how much it means to me."

Sky flashed his well-known grin and shook Seto's hand. "So," he said, "A couple friends and I are gonna do this Survival Games thing later, you wanna join?"

Seto cast a glance to the bubbling potion then looked back at Sky and nodded, his old smirk growing across his face. "Definitely."

[…]

Later the next day, Seto groaned and flopped onto his couch, shoulders heavy with exhaustion."I am never, ever going to use _any_ more rocket launchers."

_"I told you not to. He was obviously wearing the overpowered armor, Seto. You're such a stupid little Wizard, you know that?"_

"Whatever," Seto mumbled. After a moment of lying there, he rolled off the couch and stood, trudging down the hall. "I know nothing about guns. I thought it was safe to assume that if he wasn't taking damage, I wouldn't either."

_"… Sometimes you can be really… Oh, I don't even know how to insult you on this new spike of stupidity."_

"Shut up," Seto muttered, walking into his room. He sighed and unclasped his cloak, tossing it onto a chair and sitting down on a bed. "Do you think the scar's faded yet?" he asked, lifting his shirt and peering down at his ribs.

But no, it was still there. It was still a long, dark stripe going across his left side. Seto sighed and dropped his shirt, falling back onto the bed. "It's been a month. How long does it take for scars to heal?"

_"I do not know, seeing that I have never had a body of my own. I figured that you would be the one to know. But then again, you know next to nothing."_

Seto frowned slightly and stared up at the ceiling. "I don't know either, so I guess we'll just have to wait."

Waiting took forever sometimes, but in the end it was always worth it. Seto knew that very well.

So he sat there, listening to the crickets chirp their summertime tune. Somewhere outside a toad croaked, which was quickly followed up by a smaller ribbit from a frog.

Seto sighed and stood from the bed, walking out into the hall. He passed the living room and went straight outside. "You know, I think summer is the only season I love more than fall," he whispered, looking up at the starry sky.

Kerberos hummed and Seto felt her surface slightly to peer out through his eyes. _"I suppose so," _she said after a moment, falling back into his mind. _"You know, Marc loves it when people appreciate his seasons."_

"I find it funny how you kow so much about other gods." Seto started walking, going around the house. "But you hate everything in life."

_"I never said I hated everything the gods create. I just hate the gods and the people they make. But I have my reasons, Seto. It is very similar to how you hate science and machines and the city."_

Seto hummed and went over to Agnus, who was peacefully curled up next to the house. She stirred as he neared, one violet eye sliding open. **_"Father?"_**

Seto smiled and set a hand on her snout, rubbing the soft scales. She rumbled a soft purr and opened her eyes all the way. **_"Can't sleep?"_**

"No, I could probably sleep if I wanted to. But tonight's a nice night and I decided you should have some company." Seto sat climbed onto her forearm, leaning against her shoulder and looking up at the stars. "And besides, I know you weren't asleep."

It was in the middle of summer. The trees were in full bloom and the wind whistled through the leaves happily, twisting and turning around them. An owl hooted from the roof, bright yellow eyes watching over the forest.

Agnus chuckled slightly and followed his gaze. _"**You know me well."**_

They fell into silence for a few minutes. Agnus set her head down again, shifting to curl her tail around Seto. **_"Tell me a story, Father. Please?"_**

Seto sighed slightly and looked up at the stars. After a moment of thinking, he pointed to a constellation. "That's Orion. And to his right is a giant bull, ten times his size. Look, you can see the tips of the bull's horns. There… and there."

Agnus stared up at the stars he was pointing to. She nodded and said, **_"Yes, I see them."_**

"Well, you see that little cluster of stars there? Those are seven princesses, but you can only see six."

**_"Why only six?"_**

"The other princesses are jealous of the seventh's beauty and they told her she was ugly. So she locked herself away to keep her light to herself. Sometimes, Agnus, you can see her."

**_"Why does the bull have them so close?"_**

Seto smiled and sat back, eyes tracing the invisible lines connecting the stars. "See, the bull wanted all the beauty of the princesses to himself. So he snatched them up and set them on his shoulder. Orion was supposed to marry one of his liking, but then that happened. So he followed the bull up into the heavens, wielding his shield and sword. He engaged the bull in battle, Agnus. And they're still fighting, stuck up there forever in the stars."

Agnus stared up at the story he had made, watching with her imagination as the stars danced and twirled in battle. The little white spots that were strewn across a dark blanket, forever fighting over beauty, were stuck up there in the sky. **_"Why can they not just negotiate and calm down? Perhaps the bull only wants to protect the princesses from Orion? Maybe Orion is evil, Father. Is that possible?"_**

"I… I don't know, dear," Seto murmured, "That could be the case. Only time can tell. Scars only heal with time."

_"I thought you said you didn't know when, Seto."_

Seto smiled and stared up at the stars. "Well, scars are only a reminder of battles from the past. Scars aren't from the future, Kerberos. They fade with time. Everything fades someday, and it'll only be a matter of time until these scars fade. But I think I'm patient enough to wait."

* * *

**So you guys can tell this was kind of just strung together. Sorry about that, but I just wanted to finish it so I could start working on the newer version. I'll be leaving this one up if anybody ever wants to read it again, though.**

**But I hope you guys enjoyed. Even though this isn't my best story, I liked writing it. Don't worry guys, the next one will be thought through better. But expect some major changes. But at least I can finally press the 'completed' button on this story.**

**Leave a review, tell me what you think. Thanks for sticking with me on this one, stay awesome like that!**

**-Cold**


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